Welcome to the New
by 2theSky
Summary: A new game character who isn't a part of any of the arcade games mysteriously appears in Game Central Station. Is there any chance of getting him back home? And why doesn't anyone like him?
1. Part 1 - In the Dust

_-hello! :) (was that a little too cheerful? i can tone it down... oh, who cares? point is, i've never written a story for Wreck-It Ralph until now, and i'm most likely gonna mess up some stuff... so please bear with me! any reviews- constructive criticism, good, bad, ugly, whatever- are appreciated. just... no DESTRUCTIVE criticism... already get enough of that. so... now i'll stop babbling and leave you to the story- it's set after the movie, btw.)_

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**PART ONE: In the Dust**

**"And this vapor of a life will vanish on the wind. Every road I've traveled on will come to an end..." -Brandon Heath "In the Dust"**

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Grubby hands were laced with tiny cuts, little pinpricks of blood formerly flowing from them after a tangle with a neighbor's rosebush and his bike. Little cracks from calluses on the small hands were dusted in dirt, dirt from helping his aunt with the flowerbeds, or possibly grease from helping his uncle repair the old black Mustang in their garage. Some of the grime had wedged its way under the tips of his short fingernails.

His eyes scanned the floor of Litwak's Arcade as he entered, two bullies from school nearly plowing over him as they exited. The door slammed, and he jumped, not a fan of loud noises. As he jumped, he looked down, seeing his dirty sneakers, the red washed in mud, his jeans sprinkled in dark spots and light spots, and his grey t-shirt just smudged here and there. He wondered what his hair looked like. Probably sticking up in every direction possible, fire red hair sticking up in clumps and tufts of flame.

And there it was.

The outlet.

He sighed. The outlet was already filled with two extension cords; one wove to his left and one wove to his right. So that's what the games were played into…

Maybe if he could find the extension cord…

He reached into his back pocket, fingering his black Nintendo DS, feeling a crack in its smooth backing from when the bullies who'd almost steamrolled him only a minute ago had shoved him into a wall of lockers just last week. His back still ached; the knob of numbers on his gym locker was imbedded in his back, a bright purple and yellow bump. He grabbed the DS and switched it to his front pocket, then reached into his back pocket again.

The charger.

His DS was dead. He was going to charge it today, but with his aunt and uncle keeping him busy until now, now sending him off with a handful of quarters. They loved him, he knew that. But… but he felt like a nuisance. So once in a while, he quietly asked for a few quarters and flew down the streets along the blur of highways to the arcade, and hid there. Maybe he wasn't an annoyance, but he didn't want to take any chances.

He looked up as he almost walked into a game. The girl standing at the controls stared at him, then jumped as the screen displayed the message of doom for any gamer: "GAME OVER."

She turned and glared at him. "Watch where you're going, idiot!" she snapped, her hazel eyes turning almost yellow in her fury. Her short blond hand fell into her face as she stared him down. "You owe me a buck, jerk! I was going for the record!"

He hastily pulled five quarters from his pocket and quickly handed over his peace offering, his brown eyes wide as she snorted, holding up the extra quarter. "Can't you count?! Man, everyone's right. You ARE stupid." She threw the extra quarter up in the air and turned back to her game as he grabbed the quarter before it could hit the hard ground and roll away. He glanced around and looked back at the girl; she was in his class…

Great.

She was playing some cart racing game, and he dared to step just a little closer to watch. It felt like something forbidden. Maybe it was. But just a glance at it- Sugar Rush.

He stared at the game, watching as the racer she had crossed the finish line. Second place. He wanted to congratulate her, but he knew it wouldn't do any good. She just spit in his face again and call him whatever name popped into her head first.

Oh well. He felt around in his pocket. One… two, three… four… five-

"Outta the way, genius!"

He fell headfirst into a game, finally landing on his knees. Another bump or bruise or both. He got up quickly and looked at the game he'd ran into, thanks to another bully. Just how many kids hated him?!

Mario.

This was a newer version of Mario, too. Not bad. He shook his head, wincing as he did so, and started counting his money again. One… two… three, four, five…

Five quarters.

That was maybe one or two games. But that was fine. He was good, but he'd never brag. He held records on many of them, but he'd never boast about that either. No one knew the three simple initials, SMK, was him.

Well, that wasn't even his initials to begin with. It was an acronym for what everyone thought he was-

Stupid Mute Kid.

And it worked. He saw and open game and raced over.

Fix-It Felix Jr.

He grinned slyly. Another record on this game couldn't hurt. It-

The cord.

There, gloriously tucked behind the game, was the cord! And there were two open outlets.

He quickly plugged in his DS and returned to the game, immediately beginning his game. He flew through round after round after round, occasionally glancing at his game. he'd seen people plug in their phones and their iPods. Was there any difference?

No.

After twenty minutes, he had set another record. He hadn't beaten his personal best, but he'd come mighty close. He smiled at the game and tapped the side, slipping behind it. He paid no mind to any possible cobwebs or spiders. Instead, he crouched down, sinking behind the game and smiling as he turned on his game. No one could see him; some wrestling game off to his left shielded him on one side, and on the other, some zombie game. The machines must've been shuffled around again.

No matter. He wasn't in anyone's way, and since he was seeing double, he sighed and turned off the game. It was pointless to play if the game had two screens. He only had three games; Mario, which he'd already played through several times, a Namco collection game, and Labyrinth's Curse.

Labyrinth's Curse was new. It had the best graphics, and it was a present from his uncle and aunt for his birthday a week ago. He hadn't played it much; getting his hand slammed in a locker had kind of played a role in that.

So he sat quietly behind the game and closed his eyes, trying to contain the pounding in his head so that his brain didn't explode…

…

Six twenty-two.

He quickly ran out of Litwak's, realizing he had to be home by seven. Sure, that was possible walking. But with his head spinning so violently, he felt like part of a Tilt-a-Whirl from the amusement park an hour and a half away. He stopped and leaned against a tree in the upper east side of town, trying to figure out which way was home. Was it straight? No, straight was the Lincoln Valley Middle School, and that was the last place he wanted to go.

Right? Um… that was the YMCA, the town's minuscule shopping center, the Post Office tucked into the back of a bakery, and a little spray of flowers flowing next to the roads thanks to the garden and hardware store. That wasn't right.

And left…

Yes, it was left.

He found his feet stumbling beneath him as he turned, trying to keep his feet on the cracked and worn sidewalk. Several times he slipped, realizing the purple tinge in the sky meant he wasn't making it home in time. He wasn't even sure-

bully.

There, twenty wobbly foot steps away, was one of his tormentors, a flaming skull dashed across his shirt, his hair clumped in spikes of intimidation, and his dark eyes gleaming as he relished in nightmares to come for… well, him.

The bigger, stronger boy was stepping off the sidewalk, for once obeying the rules as he stepped onto the weathered crosswalk. What he didn't see, and what his little "enemy" managed to get a glimpse of was a red pick-up truck speeding towards him, paying no mind to the stop sign he'd blown past.

He forgot his dizziness, his curfew, the fact that what he was about to do would save an enemy and dashed forward, his feet pounding as he slipped off the sidewalk and into the road, barreling into the bully who'd slammed him with his fists so many times, or his words moreso, and his last thought before red pick-up collided with his tired body was that he'd actually managed to tackle one of his worst nightmares.

He just hoped his tackle had been enough to save the bully. Like all the bullies said… he was worthless. A bother. An eyesore. An idiot.

His DS flew from his pocket, sliding across the street and into the sidewalk's edge, a crack decorating it as a souvenir. The device went unnoticed by all as time seemed to stop.

As the world flickered around him, he smiled, aware of nothing but utter chaos reigning above him. Maybe now the bullies would get their wish, their wish of him ceasing to exist.

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_-okay, so not inside the games yet, but this needed some context for the events to come._

_any typos- i say this a lot- are my bad, and i apologize. :(_

_have an awesome day and God bless, awesome peoples! :)_


	2. Part 1 - Chapter 2

Ralph felt a smile tug at his lips as he stepped out of Pac-Man, leaving another BAD-ANON session behind him. It felt good to go, to get any struggle since his grand escapade through Hero's Duty and Sugar Rush. True, Zangief was strange to say the least, and Zombie (what even was his name?!) was creepy, and Bowser kinda just…

No , they were all good guys. Quirks and all, they were good, even if they were bad, which in the longrun only made life more confusing.

Good bad guys…

"Okay, time to stop thinking," Ralph mumbled, smirking. He knew if he stayed on this enigma of a topic too long he'd wind up with a headache, and probably have a repeat of the last time he'd had one; he reached up to massage his temples and wound up punching himself. How that happened… he didn't know.

But he didn't want an unfortunate repeat of that incident.

"If you leave your game, stay safe…"

And there was the Sonic Public Service Announcement… Ralph rolled his eyes. He had nothing to hold against the blue hedgehog. Honestly, however, that message getting played over and over and over… it was getting quite tiresome to hear on a continuous loop. Maybe Game Central Station's security had decided to torture those who passed through the gates from one glorious game to another.

But Sonic… the guy could be arrogant. Even at Felix and Tamora's wedding, the guy had been more than a little disgruntled by the whole "rampage and cybugs and near-total-destruction" incident; after getting hit by Ralph's out of control Hero's Duty vehicle, which he'd borrowed- if anyone asked later on- Sonic had lost a lot of rings from getting hit. And rings were important to him.

Now the two had mostly made up, with one of the most awkward handshakes on record. A miniature white glove of a hand joining forces with a massive hammer nearly to drill through the nearest wall…

But it was progress.

A few emerald-jaded bugs raced by Ralph's head, and he spun to miss them, laughing as one turned around. Its red eyes flashed in apology, then it joined his swarm.

Ralph grinned, waving goodbye with one hand and cradling cherries from Pac-Man in the other. Surprisingly, no guards had stopped him with them.

Suddenly the lights in Game Central Station flickered, several erupting into sparks. Ralph raised his arms in defense in case some stray bits of yellow heat hit him. None did, and he lowered his arms, glancing around. "What was-"

a flash appeared in front of him, a set of lines forming a shape. A body.

Ralph took a step back, almost tripping over the little Dig Dug game characters on their way to Tappers. He glanced back with a hasty apology muttered , taking note of Eggman appearing as well, asking in his very villainy voice, "What's going on, Ralph?"

No response, except for Ralph's jaw dropping as the lines changed from a brilliant white to a neon green. The lines raced faster, some in circles on a constant orbit, some playing magic tricks, disappearing and reappearing, and the majority of them forming an outline of… the outline of a person?!

"Wreck-It, what-"

Ralph turned quickly, acknowledging Tamora. She grabbed his shoulder, digging her fingernails in and he growled. "Okay, lay off! Trying to-"

"Excuse me?!"

"Sergeant, whatever- just-"

"I don't have time for your nonsense, whacka-"

The lines burst into another brilliant flare, and then disappeared.

"Oh my gl…" Ralph was pushed aside, into Zangief, who was nursing a tall frosty rooter from Tappers, his lips brown from licking the drink over them. He stared. "Ralph, you bump into me-" he froze, his eyes wide. "Who-"

All the Station stopped, silence reigning victoriously as the characters stared at what had been a flash of light. The light had vanished, leaving in its place…

another game character.

Ralph turned and knelt beside the Sergeant; it was a little difficult with his height, but he managed. "Serg-"

"Don't call me that," she snapped, grabbing the newcomer and rolling them onto them back.

"But-"

She glared at Ralph, her slate-tinted eyes shooting daggers, the red on her uniform pulsing ominously. "Do you wanna argue, Scatterbrain?"

"You've been around Vanellope way too much."

"Can it, Wreck-It. She's smart." Tamora frowned. "Sleep mode, knocked out, call it what you will- he's out."

"He?" someone in the back piped up; it sounded like someone from Mario… maybe Princess Peach?

Tamora rolled her eyes. "Okay, gawkers, break it up. Random flash of light- nothing to see here," she hissed, the edge in her crisp voice leaving no room for debate. Everyone took off, scurrying in one direction or another. She looked to Ralph. "He's drained. How he hasn't reached Game Over is beyond me. And his arm-"

"What happened to it?" Ralph asked, staring at the unconscious character. He was average height, for a game program, and his skin was pallid, tinged with death-like shades of grey. The only indication that he was alive was that his chest rose and fell slowly, almost shakily. His hair was a mix of green and grey, every strand creating a spiky, unruly mess. The clothes he wore were torn, ripped and covered in grime. Bare feet, several dark spots on his skin resembling bruises… green, grey, and black and white…

Wherever he was from, Ralph and the Sergeant could both see something was obviously wrong. He was thin and ragged… and his left arm was… gone.

Where his arm should be, a stump, the end wrapped in cloth and covered, replaced it. It wasn't a gory sight like those of the Zombie games- it looked like he had just been programmed to not have that arm. At all.

He didn't look scary. In fact, he looked like he could be a very nice sort. But the Sergeant had seen far too many whose looks were deceiving, and Ralph wasn't sure, and wouldn't be, until the program's eyes flickered open.

Ralph slipped his massive hands under the still form, a weak groan slipping from the battered stranger's charcoal-kissed lips. "I'll take him with me. Maybe Felix or the Nicelanders will know how to fix him."

"'Fix him?' " Tamora scoffed. "Ralph, he's not a pile of rubble- he's a character from a game!"

"If you haven't noticed, I turn everything into rubble," Ralph returned, thundering towards his game, characters stopping to stare at him; a bad guy being… NICE?! True it wasn't a first, but… it was a sight to take in before it vanished forever into the Game Central Station archives, never to be uncovered again.

Ralph didn't even notice the stares. He was too busy contemplating just who this new arrival was and how he wound up here.

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_-sorry for any mistakes; i checked, but i probably missed some :(_

_thanks, Guest, silver hammer, and Welcome to the New for the reviews :) i really appreciate it. :)_


	3. Part 1 - Chapter 3

Brick walls.

Red and brown brick walls with a tacky grey mortar cementing them together was what greeted the "strange character", as he had been dubbed by everyone in Fix-it Felix, Jr. who had laid eyes on him. He jumped out of the bed-

bed?

Brick walls with color and a bed. A hard bed, true, but those boards were the softest thing he'd ever slept on.

He stared at the red blanket draped around his body and jumped, throwing it off, something crashing in the process, shattering. Red? Brown? What-

"Hey! What are you doing out of bed? You're-"

Ralph burst into his room, seeing the character standing shakily, the blanket he'd tucked around his shivering form laying in a crumpled ball on the floor, and a broken vase of flowers.

The game program jumped backwards, stumbling into the bed behind him and falling to the floor. Ralph frowned, his fists clenched; he wasn't mad… He was confused. The guy looked scared, not quite terrified, but definitely scared of something-

Ralph sighed. "Are you okay? Who… who are you?"

The character tried to push himself up from the floor, but fell back, wincing. "R-Ryley," he whispered, his voice quiet. "Who are you?"

"Ralph."

Ryley. So this guy had a name, and was incredibly quiet. "Ryley, um, how did you get here?"

"Where's here?"

Ralph's frown grew. "Fix-it Felix, Jr. You just appeared in Game Central Station-"

"What? Where's that?"

"Hey, Ralph, is he-"

Ryley jumped as the closed wooden door swung open, revealing a guy he'd never seen before in pure blue; blue overalls, shirt, hat, and toting a golden hammer, his blond hair perfect and blue eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Who-"

"Vanellope's vase!" the newcomer exclaimed, kneeling on the floor and drawing back his hammer, scooping the bits of colorful vase into a pile. Ryley scooted away, and the new face turned to face him after whacking the bits of vase with his hammer and somehow- he wasn't sure how- fixing it. "Is he okay?"

Ralph shrugged, almost banging his shoulders off his bedroom ceiling. "I think so. He's probably just scared."

Ryley curled against the bed frame, and for the first time, Ralph and Felix noticed he was squinting. "Something wrong with your eyes?" Ralph asked, realizing just how awkward and blunt it sounded after he voiced it.

Ryley shook his head. "Just… I'm just not u-used to the light. Not a lot of it where I'm from." He shakily pushed himself up, grabbing onto the bed like his pixelized life depended on it, and sat down slowly on the boards. He sighed, closing his eyes and mumbling something that neither Ralph nor Felix caught.

Felix finally, after a moment or two, shattered the silence. "So you're not from around here? Not from a new game, or anything?"

The answer he got was a quick shake of Ryley's head. Ryley reached up and pushed back his matted hair, blinking his green eyes in curiosity. An observer… Felix had already picked up on that; being married to a game character who used oversized demon bugs for target practice truly had its benefits. "Where are you from?" Felix inquired, his voice kind like it usually was unless he didn't have his pie or he missed some bricks in the repairs… it was a OCD thing.

The young character nodded; he looked like a teenager, like he could possibly, if everyone was blind to his basketball player height and lack of candy clothes, could blend right in in the ever hyper Sugar Rush. "Yes."

"Well…" Felix sat down next to him, and the program moved over, giving him more room, "now that we know you know where you're really from… where is it?"

"Labyrinth's Curse."

"Labyrinth's… curse?" Felix forced out of his lips around a gulp and a desert-dry mouth.

Ryley nodded casually, as if they were discussing the weather. "Yep."

"That's not in the arcade," Ralph commented.

"Yeah… it's only on the DS," Ryley explained, coughing as his mouth turned as dry as Felix's.

Felix grabbed a water bottle resting on a little table in the room and handed it to Ryley. Ryley frowned. "What is this?" he asked around another cough.

"Water."

"Water…" Ryley's eyes grew wide. "Water's not this clear… but ours is filthy anyways."

Ralph and Felix exchanged a puzzled glance as Ryley, instead of unscrewing the cap, stared at the bottle for a few seconds, then gripped the tiny cap with his teeth, which weren't white, but slightly greyed. It wasn't bad. It wasn't a Zombie thing where they were rotting out of his head- they were just grey.

Felix sighed. "So many questions right now."

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_-sorry for any mistakes in the last chapter- i guess i just didn't catch them :( i fixed where i messed up with Sonic, 'cause that really started bugging me :P  
_

_and sorry for any typos- the last few days haven't been the greatest and my concentration is at zero, but that's no excuse :(_

_and- sorry if this upsets anyone- but i don't update daily. i usually update at least once a week, but usually more, unless life gets in my way. _

_also- the cover for this story should, emphasis on SHOULD, be up next week. :)_

_thanks, silver hammer, Welcome to the New, and Pirateweasel for the reviews! :)_


	4. Part 1 - Chapter 4

"Who is he?"

"Where's his arm?!"

"He's so pale… it's scary."

"I think the Ghost Trackers game left one of their characters behind. "

Ryley glanced up at Ralph, then looked back at the station, rubbing just above the end of the stump he called his arm. "Popular already… this is a record."

"What do you mean?" Ralph countered, his massive fists swinging without threat by his sides, his red and brown shirt and overalls slightly loose; he'd been cutting back on the pie lately, especially since Ryley had shown up a week ago. The kid had quickly regained his strength, and when he put on weight from all the pies the Nicelanders fed him- it turned out he could put away more pie than Felix, or Ralph- it transformed into muscle tone. He was incredibly strong, even for only having one arm, and he was coping unbelievably well.

Ryley shyly brushed his unruly hair from his face. "Well… I'm kinda an outcast in Labyrinth's Curse."

"How so?" Ralph felt like he had a connection to his new friend, or acquaintance, or whatever terms they were on.

"It's a little hard to explain," Ryley slurred. Ralph nodded, deciphering the slight blend to all of Ryley's words; the kid had a slight impediment, or slur, to every word, almost a stutter, but not quite. It was… hard to put into words. "Let's just say there's either blue, or yellow, and then there's…" he gestured to himself. "…me. And I'm green."

Ralph tilted his head, not quite getting what his young friend was saying, but understanding something in his vocalized enigma. "So, green is bad?"

"Yep," Ryley replied, popping the "p" in "yep" and shrugging like it wasn't a problem in the slightest.

"You're an outcast?"

Ryley shook his head. "Not AN outcast. THE outcast."

"I'm confused," Ralph admitted, scratching the back of his neck, making his messy brown-red hair stand on end.

"Let's just say I'm not too well-liked. And," Ryley hesitated before tacking on, "neither are my friends."

"Do your friends miss you?"

A shrug came in response, and Ralph dropped the subject like a ton of bricks.

Besides, he had something better to do than grill Ryley about his game-

he had to introduce Ryley to Vanellope.

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_-yay for short chapters... eh, not really :P_

_any typos are completely my fault. sorry :(_

_thanks, silver hammer and Welcome to the New for reviewing! :) the reviews really mean a lot :)_


	5. Let Us Be

"How is he?"

The Asian nurse sighed, clicking her tongue off her teeth before responding to a very panicky aunt and seemingly insensitive uncle. A strand of her hair fell from her sloppy bun in a curl by her pale cheek. Her dark eyes betrayed her before she even voiced the results on her tacky, and surprisingly gummy, clipboard. "Concussion, three broken ribs, two cracked, sprained wrist and ankle, and two broken fingers," she recounted, hoping her voice remained strong for the… parents? Guardians? She wasn't sure who they were- all she knew was that they were here for the mute child lying in ICU, his battered body covered in bruises, monitors, wires, and a far too big oxygen mask.

The woman glanced past the nurse, through the thin green-tinted sliver of a window in the door to the child's room, her hazel eyes wide. "Will he be okay?"

The nurse smiled slightly. "The odds at the moment are that he should recover. But he's going to be in rough shape for a while." She paused a moment, then decided her opinion needed to be heard, saying, "you know, not a lot of kids would push another out of harm's way like that. You have a brave… son? Or is it nephew?"

"Nephew," the uncle supplied gruffly, his black, very short beard peppered with grey and white. His hair was the same, short and old TV show, classic black and white flecked. His eyes were a steely grey to match.

"Well," the nurse allowed her pink lips to widen in a genuine smile, "congratulations on a brave nephew."

The nurse left, her white uniform blending in with the sterile walls as soon as she was far enough away; as soon as she was gone, the aunt fell into the wall, tears falling down her cheeks in waves, the blue of the ocean kissing sun-tanned sandy skin. She shook her head as her husband laid a hand on her back. "I-I can't believe-"

"Me either, honey," the shock-still man mumbled, his voice turning into a traitor, unearthing his true feelings. When his sister and her husband passed in the car accident… he'd been handed the last thing he ever wanted.

A child.

It wasn't like John was a bad kid; no, he was an angel. But with his… disability… he was more of a liability. The silences that stretched after a question or comment were becoming unbearable. And everyone knew it-

especially John.

The thirteen year old was incredibly tense; his frame was always rigid and straight. It wasn't right.

And, in light of this accident, Mary and Lewis Kergston knew, just knew, that this was their shot to tear down the wall of tension building itself ever so slowly between them and their nephew.

They'd start the destruction of the wall the second he woke up.

…

"Excuse me, are you the guardians of a… hold on a second… John-"

"Kergston?" The uncle filled in for the nervous, and very round, police officer who approached them like he was the unfortunate messenger that was about to be killed for the message he bore. "Yes."

Beady blue eyes blinked quickly in a pudgy, leathery face, as the officer nodded. "Um… this was found at the site of the accident. It was identified as your…" he glanced at the mass of paperwork in his arms, flipping through pages to double-check his information, "nephew's?"

He pulled out a battered DS, cracked and scuffed and ultimately worn. The couple nodded, the aunt gingerly taking it from the officer. She slipped it into her pink leather purse, feeling her nephew's charger which they found on him after the accident as well. She smiled slightly and whispered a "thank you", then leaned on her husband slightly, trying to find some light in the dark situation they were facing.

She glanced down at her purse, biting her lip. Maybe she had some hope, in the form of a battered and abused game system.

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_-so... the cover won't be up this week- sorry :( but it WILL be up next week!_

_sorry for typos- leaving to go to my cousins for a couple days and i can't really proof this :P_

_thanks for the reviews so far, guys :) i really appreciate them :)_

_have a great weekend and 4th of July! :) God bless! :)_


	6. Part 2 - Ready, Aim, Fire

**PART TWO: Ready, Aim, Fire**

**"How come I've never seen your face 'round here? I know every single face 'round here. A man on a mission, changing the vision- I was never welcome here…" -Imagine Dragons "Ready, Aim Fire"**

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Vanellope drummed her fingers against the chair in her… palace? She hated that word…

PALACE.

She wasn't a queen- she was a president! And though she loved the idea of a huge house, especially one constructed of white rock candy, she didn't want it to sound so regal.

Vanellope stopped drumming on the armrest of her chair; it wasn't King Candy's high-backed, "salmon" chair of complete and utter discomfort any more. That had been placed in the museum she was having built to commemorate the history of Sugar Rush. She now had a chair made of gumdrops, and it was incredibly bouncy.

But something just seemed off today…

Or no, tonight. It was night, and everyone was roaming through Game Central Station. She had her doors open for Q-bert and his friends, because they occasionally stayed in the castle and were excellent company, and she also had the doors open for one behemoth in particular.

Ralph.

She smiled at that. Ralph was always a great friend, though being the ultimate booger-brain.

But Vanellope's frown returned. Today had been fine! No complaints, the races went on as usual, and…

"Maybe it was just too ordinary?" she mumbled to herself, hearing her voice echo on the now multicolored-twisty lollipop walls, yet another remodel. "Just too glob-stinking ordinary, that's what it is."

She turned as the pitter-patter of quick, hard-candy feet, rushed up to her. Sour Bill… he had the day- no, the week off! What-

"Vanellope-" he stopped, hesitating again as just saying her first name with no regal title felt wrong. "-Ralph is here, and-"

"Great!" Vanellope squealed, and Bill smiled slightly; she was much more enthusiastic and generous than King Candy- or Turbo - or whatever he was!- had ever been. "But you have time off? Why did you come to tell me?"

Sour Bill's green eyes blinked in response, then he blurted, "There's someone with Ralph. And the rest of the game is scared of him."

Vanellope bit her lip in thought. Scared? Who would Ralph be friends with who was scary? Well, aside from Zangief and that Zombie guy… "Where's Ralph now?"

"He should be entering the gates soon."

Vanellope nodded. "Okay. Thanks for the heads-up, but I'm pretty sure this new gum ball-brain won't be any problem."

"Have you seen him?"

"Have you?" Vanellope countered, not harshly but not in the most joking manner. She was sick of the hypocrisy and judgement that ruled Sugar Rush, picking up her fellow racers and stringing them up, playing the puppet-master.

Sour Bill sighed. "No…" he admitted. "But what I've heard isn't good, and he's only been in here a few minutes!"

"I'll judge for myself."

Bill nodded and plodded away, back to his room in Vanellope's castle, his feet bouncing on the marshmallow-candy carpeted floors.

Vanellope looked out the window behind her, the sky of the game starting to darken as night grew closer. She stared down at herself for a second, thinking, thinking hard.

Green hood. Miss-matched leggings, black boots. Her hair pulled up in a Twizzler and sprinkled with candy…

She didn't look at all scary, and what had she been for years?

The glitch.

The worthless, good for nothing, glitch.

Vanellope's chocolate-brown eyes narrowed. Those days were gone; well, for the most part. She was sick of everyone holding their noses so high in the air, like they were the best. She smiled. "I always like making new friends, anyways," she thought aloud, pushing herself up from her chair, a strange noise coming from the chair when she pried her hands from it. Another perk of having a gum drop chair. "And besides, I have Ralph to pound down their over-sized egos."

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_-so sorry for not updating this before now :( it's just been a... a rough week. :(_

_thanks for the reviews so far, guys :)_

_God bless! :)_


	7. Part 2 - Chapter 2

"Well, they don't like me…"

Ralph stole a glance over his shoulder at Taffyta Muttonfudge, glaring at her. She was whispering to Rancis and Candlehead, her buttercream icing tinted hair swishing around her face as she dramatically gestured at Ryley, who wasn't looking back. He already knew what to expect. He was used to it.

The giant wrecking ball turned around at Ryley's comment of, "Oh well."

"'Oh well?!'" Ralph hissed, glancing back again as Taffyta made eye-contact with him, her blue raspberry eyes widening slightly. "That isn't right, Ryley!"

"So? It's nothing new. I'm f-"

Ralph stopped walking and knelt beside the, though tall, very short game character, cutting him off. "Don't say 'I'm fine!' How can you be fine?"

"The same way you are."

Ryley winced, realizing that was probably the wrong thing to say. "I'm so sorry, Ralph. I didn't-"

"You heard?"

"Uh… yep. From…" Ryley awkwardly stared at his feet, then rubbed at the stump of his useless arm. "From Clyde… when he came to visit you and you weren't in two days ago…" he stopped again. "He was asking if I knew why you didn't show at some ANON meeting?"

Ralph smiled, shaking his head. "Clyde's a little too open with his blabbing."

"I really didn't mean to up-"

"Kid, it's fine." Ralph gently poked Ryley's shoulder, getting them both to smile. "Besides, everyone already knows about that whole incident."

Ryley didn't look convinced; so Ralph grabbed up the doubting Thomas and plopped him on his shoulder. "There," he said, grinning at Ryley, who was stunned, "hang on. Just because I'm huge doesn't mean I can't run fast!"

"What does that-"

Ryley barely had a chance to cling to Ralph's worn shirt before the giant villain of Fix-It Felix, Jr. took off running, leaving the crowd of gossiping racers in the dust- the Pixie Stick sugar dust, that is. Grape flavored to be exact.

"Whoa! Ralph, where are we going?" Ryley yelled, laughing over the rush of the sticky sweet candy wind.

"The castle!"

Ryley took in another gulp of super sweet air; he'd never smelled, or tasted, anything like it. "Castle?" That didn't register as anything good in his digital mind.

"Yeah. Time to meet Vanellope!"

Ryley nodded, faking a smile at Ralph's enthusiastic expression.

…castle?!

Castles weren't anything Ryley was fond of.

As Ralph bounded across the game, Ryley was partially distracted from his thoughts by the candy landscape. Candycane trees, rivers of chocolate, hills of candy… it was so different. No… no walls…

Suddenly, a colorful building came into view and Ryley's jaw dropped. "What… is that-"

"Vanellope's castle? Of course!" Ralph answered, slowing down as he neared the gates.

Ryley smiled, shocked at how colorful it was, how colorful the entire game was. He just hoped the inside wasn't contradicting of the outside's brilliance.

And that maybe this Vanellope would like him.

* * *

_- i really intended to post this yesterday... sorry :( my friend's birthday party drained me completely- it was awesome!- and i'm still tired... :P_

_and the cover is now up! yay! :D_

_sorry if there are any typos... :(_

_thanks, Pirateweasel, Welcome to the New, and silver hammer for the reviews :)_


	8. Part 2 - Chapter 3

"Welcome to the castle."

Ryley gaped at the candy kaleidoscopes weaving and twisting up the walls and pillars. It was… amazing. "Vanellope lives here?"

Ralph nodded. "Yeah, she- kid, you okay? You look like you've never seen anything like this before."

"I kinda haven't. And anything where I'm from is too dark to see," he replied quietly, murmuring the second half so Ralph didn't quite catch it.

"LOOK OUT!"

At the sudden warning cry, Ryley instinctively dropped to the lemon-drop tile floor, flattening as a gust of wind flew right over him. He didn't dare to look up, just stayed down, eyes squeezed shut.

Ralph, on the other hand, just jumped backwards, causing a minor earthquake to rattle the realm of Sugar Rush. He stared at Ryley, who remained glued to the floor, as a blur of a character on a Twizzler flew over his cowering friend.

The blur slowed down, revealing a laughing Vanellope; she released the candy vine and fell onto a pile of gummy worms, part of one winding up in her mouth. She took a bite of it, then crawled out of the pile, grinning at Ralph. "Hey, big guy! How's every-" she glanced at Ryley, who hadn't moved. "Who's he?"

Ryley slowly looked up, still pressed to the floor. He used his one arm to push himself up and stared at Vanellope, eyes wider than the whole of Sour Bill's candy body. Vanellope watched as he sat up, a little shaky. "Are you okay?"

He nodded. "Are you… Vanellope?" he asked slowly, making sure not to offend her by butchering her name.

"Yep!" She eagerly responded, rocking on her heels. "And if you start calling me "Your Highness, I'll banish you," she said jokingly.

Ryley didn't catch the joke though. He stiffened, and both Vanellope and Ralph took notice. "Ryley, you okay? Come on," Ralph grabbed his friends one arm and pulled him up so he was standing. "Vanellope's joking. It's okay."

Vanellope frowned. "Wow… look Zombie-Ghost-Baby-Look-a-Like, whatever game you're from must be really twisted."

Ralph glanced between the two as Ryley numbly nodded, slowly regaining his connection with the sugar-frosted reality he was now in. "You… you have no idea."

"Wait," Ralph held up a hand. "You never talk about you game. Is it… that bad?"

"Well, kinda?" Ryley offered as he shrugged sheepishly. "It's hard to describe, and after beginning trapped inside it for so long, this-" he motioned to the surrounding castle and the window which revealed a stream of rich chocolate, red gummy fish leaping occasionally up from its current, "-is hard to comprehend. But my game is nothing like this."

Vanellope nodded. "I figured. I mean, you look like-"

A loud, collective scream arose outside the castle. Vanellope and Ralph, with Ryley slowly trailing them, looked out to see Zombie fumbling around, his foot stuck in a gumdrop. "-like him," Vanellope finished her thought.

Ryley snorted. "Is my flesh rotting off?" he quipped, slowly allowing a grin to twist his lips upward.

Vanellope laughed as Ralph left, saying something about getting Zombie home. "No, but-" she broke off, laughing, holding her sides and falling onto the floor with a thump. "I like you. So, your name's Ryley?"

The pale game character nodded. "Yep."

"From a new game?"

He shook his head. "Not exactly."

Vanellope bit her lip. "What? There's no new arcade game filled with pasty people who are missing one of their arms?"

Ryley laughed. "Nope. And I'm the only one with a missing arm."

"Programmed?"

He nodded. "Yep. Backstory is that I'm just a flaw to my game's, shall we say, system. I'm not bad, or good- at first- but as the game goes on, I'm recognized as less of a flaw to my people's society and become a guide, if you will, to… well," he smirked, "I don't wanna give it all away."

"A guide? What, do you glow? Like where the green is on you?"

He laughed; Vanellope was shocked that his laugh was so genuine when she finally heard it; it was like he had been restraining himself. "No, no. No like that. I physically guide the gamer."

"To where? Wait, what's your game even called?"

"Labyrinth's Curse."

Vanellope just nodded in response, her dark eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Labyrinth? Doesn't that mean like a maze or something?"

Her new friend, as she already thought of him as a friend, nodded. "The game at the beginning has a controls option for flashbacks. Play with the flashbacks on, and the game's rating is 'T'. Play without them, and it's the next rating lower."

"Flashbacks? Are they graphic?"

"It's not a strong 'T' rating," Ryley explained, following Vanellope down the candy-jaded corridor. "The rating is based off some more violence, but nothing extreme. No cursing, no drugs, no sex scenes- our game's not like that. But as you said before, it is twisted." He didn't know why, but he felt like Vanellope was all too easy to talk to. Maybe it was because of his lack of friends…

Yeah. Probably.

Vanellope skipped ahead a little, staring out a massive stain glass- or colored sugar- window. The design the colors made revealed a racer crossing the finish line, and Ryley immediately latched onto the look of pain her eyes took on. "You race like the others?"

She nodded and added a faint, "Now, at least," which she didn't think Ryley caught.

But he did.

"'Now?'"

"I'm a glitch. I wasn't allowed to race. But now-"

Ryley nodded. "I think I can fit the pieces together," he replied quietly, briefly mentioned what he'd heard from Clyde about Ralph's grand gallivanting spree.

Vanellope grinned. "Without Ralph, I wouldn't be racing! He's a great friend." She motioned for Ryley to keep following, and when his curiosity pushed the question of where they were going off his grey tongue, Vanellope only grinned and said, "Somewhere we can sit down."

Sit down? Was it that important that they sit down? Ryley wondered if maybe he still looked weak from the whole… randomly-appearing scenario. Maybe too pale? No, that was stupid; he was naturally grey and pallid! Maybe-

"Here we are."

"Woah…" Ryley stared at what he was pretty sure was a throne room, or… what in the world was he supposed to call it?

Vanellope watched as Ryley suddenly swayed; she misinterpreted his awe for being dizzy and pulled him over to her gumdrop throne chair, pushing him onto it before he could react. His eyes widened and he stared at Vanellope. "What?" she asked, wondering just what was happening inside that grey and green head of his.

"This is… your chair," Ryley managed to breathe out. "Why…?"

"Oh, come on, Zombie-boy. I don't care if you sit there. Besides, it's really comfy!" Vanellope squealed in response to his unfinished question. "You like it?"

Ryley just nodded.

Vanellope watched as he stared at everything like it wasn't real. Just how different was his game? His life?

* * *

_-so i finally managed to get a somewhat longer chapter in here! ;) sorry for mistakes- i checked (wow, i actually got to check it!) and didn't see many, but..._

_thanks, Welcome to the New and silver hammer for the reviews! :) (not expecting anything long- even if it's only a word or two, and i really appreciate the reviews. they make me a better writer.)_

_have a good day/night (depending on where you are) and God bless! :)_


	9. The First

"WHERE… IS… HE?!"

The shriek of complete and utter demonic rage cut through the very core of the game's code, riddling the system with a shock that caused it to tremble under the strain.

Shadows and smudges of game characters flinched at the unholy upheaval. They froze, quaking as the walls, the dark and dank and never-ending walls, seemed to close in on them from all sides.

They all knew who had screamed.

And they knew who the reason was for the screaming.

Another scream raced through the game, and the scraps and scrapes of hollow faces returned to meandering through their lives.

What they didn't hear was the sound of shattering coming from the far end of their grungy galaxy.

The yellow flames lapped over the bridges, eating the swaying planks of rope and wood alive. Another shatter, this one particularly loud, harmonized with a crackle of fire, and a poor gaunt soul was swallowed whole; the fire had no mercy or compassion.

And neither did its master.

The smoke from the unfortunate destruction of a life cleared, revealing a palace of rock and utter rubble, but still massive and sturdy. Curtains were burned and torn, swinging in the winds that rippled through in constant icy or scorching currents. The stairs leading up to the twisted complex were no better. It was a glorious sight for the white-washed citizens of the domain to behold; it was a structure.

A home.

A home they didn't have.

And it had constant lighting, instead of the feeble flames burning in lamps every two hundred paces apart in the mass of a maze they resided in.

Suddenly another tremor rocked the mess of twists and turns, sending a swarm licorice black centipedes racing over the ground. A joyous collective cry rang out as a group of civilians pounced upon their prize, grabbing up as many as they could, some not even bothering to find a lamp and roast the thousand-leggers over it; instead, many centipedes met their demise as they were crunched to bits in the hungry mouths of the maze's dwellers.

But behind the walls of the only "home" in the wasteland, the bugs were nothing more than vermin, and the citizens no better than the bugs they grabbed with grubby hands and quickly swallowed down.

Inside, two yellow eyes twisted into thin slits, burning with a rage unknown to anyone outside of the chasms and deathtraps and corruption swirling around and fogging the air. The transparent yellow veil falling across the face which held the two blazing eyes whirled as another cry of vicious anger tore through the system. "He CAN'T be gone! Hellions, i order you to find him! Send out two hordes! NOW! Bring him alive!"

Two groups of a hundred soldiers- or as their oh-so-lovely leader dubbed them: Conquerors- immediately answered their queen's call, their grey suits seamless and striped down the right side in a pale yellow. Their ruler watched with a sweet smirk on her face, the helmet over her head, which also held the veil, matching the armor of her army. "He must be found. He must. I can't allow him to destroy me! Destroy my domain!"

The scraping of claws along the slick black floors of the castle cause her to turn, her grey and black dress, which flowed along the curves of her body perfectly and in some places quite tightly, kissing off the floor. "Ah, my humble advisors."

The three newcomers, all identical, bowed, kneeling and touching their heads to the floor, only rising when their leader signaled them to. Each one had clawed feet, filthy and blackened robes, two beady black eyes always glaring, and faces covered by hoods and masks. Only the mistress, the leader, the Queen, knew what lay behind the masks and robes, and it was not pleasant. "Our little green terror has fled," she informed them, her one yellow-veiled arm reaching up to draw closed a tattered curtain.

"Perhaps, your Highness, he has fallen into an execution pit?" one of the three spoke up, its voice gravelly and echoing, having a robotic tinge to it like Darth Vader.

"He has done so before, as you forget," the creature beside the first speaker retorted in a deep and grating monotone. "And he left his arm behind. That outcast escaped the Serpent's Den! He is the only one!"

They watched as the black-haired ruler of the Underworld realm nodded. "He has evaded us too many times! And now… he is gone! GONE!"

The three creatures nodded in unison. "So…" the first one drawled out again, "what shall we do now?"

"Whatever you wish."

The three all smirked sickly under their masks. That order from their queen was one they enjoyed. It ultimately gave them authority to bring their terrors upon the people- the literally, as well as figuratively blue people- that they were truly nothing. nothing but scum and waste, lucky enough that the terror-loving queen would grant them a chance to live.

After all, they were not called Destruction, Doom, and Disease for nothing.

And Labyrinth, their beloved queen, just smiled as the unleashed their fury.

* * *

_-welcome to Ryley's game, everybody! ;) sounds like a great place... not._

_thanks for the reviews again :) (and silver hammer: i have something along those lines planned out- i wrote quite a bit of the story before posting it, but something like that will happen :) and i'll get back to SMK soon, too :) )_


	10. Part 3 - Underdog

**PART THREE: UNDERDOG**

**"Hey, that sounds like my luck. I get the short end of it. Oh, I love to be, I love to be the underdog..." -Imagine Dragons "Underdog"**

* * *

"… but there's one problem our game has."

Vanellope nodded, completely captivated by her newfound friend's descriptions of his game. "What?"

"Our leader and her army think the game is reality. And it's only OUR game. There's a code out of place somewhere. Otherwise, Labyrinth wouldn't be this harsh during gameplay."

"But everyone is still in the game when they reach their game over," Vanellope pointed out. "So wouldn't they be fine, even if they fell into one of you execution pits?"

Ryley sadly shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. Labyrinth and her three advisors- Doom, Destruction, and Disease- plagued the game. If you die, you're done."

"How many execution pits are there?"

"Six."

Vanellope nodded again, wondering why he wasn't elaborating. "What are they?"

Ryley took a deep breath and started ticking off the doomsday locations on his one hand. "First, there's the bottomless pit. You'll know when you're close- the screaming echos horribly. Next there's the pond of flames. It's a hole in the ground with a pond of fire."

"Self-explanatory name."

A wry smirk met Vanellope as Ryley continued, his eyes starting to cloud over in memory. "The Serpent's Den is one no one escapes. Well… except me. Backstory and all that."

"Your arm?"

He nodded. "Serpent, according to backstory, bit it off. Fun, right? That's part of why I'm problem in my game's system. The Shards and Spears execution pit is where the soldiers, or the Hellion Army, get their weapons. They fight with fists, shards but mostly words. Words have the greatest impact in our game."

"They do?"

Ryley nodded, leaning forward on the throne; Vanellope, sitting next to him, leaned forward as well. "Imagine knowing any day you could die for good, that you could meet your game over and never exist again. Imagine that every day you have that information, you also hear how worthless you are, how you don't deserve to exist. And then, someday, you meet your end. The words weigh on minds heavily, and it's not just in our game."

Vanellope sighed. "Sounds sad."

"It is."

She was a little shocked at the bluntness of Ryley's reply, but brushed it off. "What about the other two?"

"The fifth one is Medusa's Charm. It's a drop- maybe fifteen paces deep. It's lit up, too, with veins of yellow fire on the sides of the pit's walls. But you can't get out. And since it's lit, you can see the other victims who fell in. They've been turned to stone. And if you look at their eyes, you become stone too. You can't climb out over the fire in the walls, so… you're done if you fall in. The last one is… well…" Ryley smiled. "I can't quite explain it. But let's just say it's not quite lethal."

"Wow." Vanellope's eyes widened. "Scary place."

"I know." Ryley sighed. "But I have to get back. Somehow…"

"But you can't! Your game left the arcade and is probably long gone! How would you get back?"

Ryley sighed again. "I don't know. Maybe if it's plugged back in… maybe then I can get back."

"But what's the point of going back to a nut-job tyrant who thinks the whole thing's real?"

Ryley closed his eyes, putting his head in his hands. "If I don't try, everyone might die. It's… it's a risk I have to take. There's only a few who haven't fallen to the words and whims of Labyrinth, and if we fight, we could break the true curse controlling our game. It's a crazy idea- I know. But if it'll save us, I'll do it."

* * *

_-really uplifting chapter there, huh? ;)_

_sorry for some of these chapters being pretty short- i'm trying to make them longer... and sorry for any typos :(_


	11. Part 3 - Chapter 2

Ralph was angry.

And an angry Ralph was the equivalent of a raging Hulk.

The whispers and conversations floating around Game Central Station were cruel. No one was giving Ryley a chance! Even some of the Nicelanders were against the kid. What was wrong with having pale skin or having an arm gone? If you could be friends with a blue hedgehog or a flesh-eating Zombie, then… what made Ryley the outlier?

"Hey!" Ralph thundered, overhearing Felix and his wife with, speaking of the devil, Sonic the Hedgehog. "What did you just say about Ryley?"

Felix faltered a little under Ralph's intense glare. "I-I just said he's a little u-unnerving. That's a-"

"What's it to you?" Tamora spat, her eyes narrowed as her and Ralph tried to out-glare each other. "Why were you listening in?"

"I wasn't! You were practically shouting over here! Well, not Felix, but still!"

Sonic frowned. "Look, you have to admit he's a little… out there. Ralph, you know that!"

"He is not!"

"He's different alright, bit-brain," came Tamora's clipped comment.

Ralph shook his head. "We're ALL different! And Ryley is NO freak." And he turned and walked away. "Have a good day, don't get killed outside your game, yadda-yadda, GOOD-BYE."

He stormed off to Vanellope's game, fuming as he sauntered through Sugar Rush. Ralph was sure the racers were watching him like he was crazy. At one point- he wasn't sure who'd said it- but someone asked rather loudly if Ralph and Ryley were more than friends… he shook his head. That was messed up thinking! Just because he defended the poor guy didn't mean squat!

He finally made it back to the castle and wandered all the way to the throne room; he could hear Ryley and Vanellope talking down the hall.

"…only a few who haven't fallen to the words and whims of Labyrinth, and if we fight, we could break the true curse controlling our game. It's a crazy idea- I know. But if it'll save us, I'll do it."

"Now I wanna knock Labyrinth-Loser Brain upside the head!" Vanellope yelled, pounding her fist off something.

Ralph grinned at her determination, but if she was mad enough to want to hurt someone… just what had Ryley told her?

* * *

_-sorry for it being so short, and sorry for any typos. :( i have a bad headache and i don't feel good :P i know that's no excuse though..._

_the next chapter should be up in a day or two... maybe it'll be longer?_

_thanks for reviewing, and even if you don't review, thanks for reading :)_


	12. Part 3 - Chapter 3

**"Where do you think you're going, FREAK?" someone shouted that Ryley couldn't see.**

**Someone else in the shadows started chasing him. "Scum!"**

**He kept running, gasping as he tore through the maze at record speed; his green coloring was like a beacon, alerting anyone and everyone to his presence. He stopped for a second, leaning on a slimy wall as he caught his breath. A little girl appeared, her blue eyes staring him down. Under the feeble glow of the lamp overhead, he could see she already was scared of him. "Why're you GREEN?" she asked, pointing at him, dragging what looked like a ratty stuffed toy behind her by its incredibly long arm. "No one else is."**

**Ryley sighed, too weak to answer. He shook his head and answered, "I really don't know." His whisper, however, was heard.**

**"Get away from him!" Ryley cringed as the girl's mother crawled out of a makeshift hut, sticks and cloth leaning on a wall. "You freak! Stay away from my child!" She grabbed her daughter, hugging her close. "Are you okay? Did he touch you?"**

**Ryley turned and fled, the tears that would've streaked down his face before held back. It was just words… they were only words...**

**"There's the green idiot!"**

**Ryley shivered, just avoiding running headlong into a wall. He swerved, barely catching himself at the edge of one of the execution pits, his body racked with tremors. He shook off the fear at nearly stumbling into Medusa's Charm and quickly took off, his feet burning from the strain.**

**He was almost there, almost there-**

**"You should just turn yourself in- it'll make our lives easier!"**

**They were STILL chasing him!**

**"Get that GLITCH!"**

**"AFTER HIM!"**

**Ryley froze momentarily before ducking behind a corner and grabbing at the wall, finding several indents or bumps that he could easily climb up. He jumped on top of the wall, a centipede creeping over his foot. "And that's dinner," he muttered, picking up the creature and biting it in two. He stared straight ahead, over the lamps, and gasped.**

**"Hellions…"**

**It looked like the whole army. The order from "years"- backstory time- ago echoed in his mind:**

**"Under Queen Labyrinth's orders, this freak who walks among you like a normal civilian is to be handed over to the Hellion Army. Anyone caught harboring this fugitive will be executed."**

**Great…**

**Ryley turned and instead of climbing down did the one thing he knew no one else had ever tried.**

**He ran on top of the walls.**

**He leaped across them, knowing the soldiers in their armor couldn't follow. They could throw whatever they wanted at him- words, shards, spears- but they'd miss; they couldn't see him.**

**"MONSTER!"**

**"Where'd your arm go?!" a soldier grated out tauntingly.**

**Words… just words… "Tune it out," he mumbled, knowing the words would haunt him. "Forgive and forget, forgive and forget, forgive and forg-"**

**"We'd all be better off if you fell in one of the execution pits!" a civilian yelled, running with the soldiers. He sighed. The soldiers loved it when civilians ran with them. It meant they were ruling the domain perfectly.**

**And Ryley was imperfection.**

**"DIE ALREADY!"**

**Ryley jumped again and again and again, feeling like he was flying. He was close! He knew it- he knew the maze almost entirely by heart. He had to reach the Outskirts. He had to!**

**Suddenly, he slipped and fell, tumbling off the wall and hitting the ground hard. He was ahead of the soldiers, but not for long. Despite the pain, Ryley stood and bolted as a shard grazed his right hand, or better yet his only hand. He kept running until he fell-**

"Ryley!"

"De-AH! I'm up!" Ryley fell with a thump onto the carmel square tiled floor in one of Vanellope's many rooms. He looked up; Vanellope was standing over him, smiling, holding a bucket of melted ice-cream. "Do NOT dump that on me!" he said quickly backing away from her

Vanellope laughed at that, then stopped as Ryley fully woke up, realizing he was talking to the ruler of a game- the game he was in. "Dude, chill! If you don't want me to dump it on ya, I won't! But you were OUT! Like when Snowanna wrecked her car two weeks ago."

Ryley smiled weakly and stood up. "What's up?"

"It's time to pick tomorrow's racers!"

Before he could react, Ryley's one hand was grabbed by the hyper- kid?- and Vanellope dragged him down to the racing track, Ralph following behind them, wishing Vanellope had dumped the ice cream over Ryley's head. The reaction would've been hilarious.

* * *

_-for some reason, i can't access fanfiction through Firefox... so i'm doing this through my other browser :P if my next update is a little late, it'll probably be because i still can't access the site (yay :P) and have to set up my other browser for writing._

_any typos... you know the drill :(_

_thanks, Welcome to the New for reviewing! :)_


	13. Part 3 - Chapter 4

"Citizens of Sugar Rush…"

Sour Bill's usually dismal opening remarks for King Candy were now energized as he smiled, welcoming "President" Vanellope to the evening event.

"All hail our rightful, and TRUE ruler, Vanellope von Schweetz!"

Vanellope appeared in the place King Candy usually did, smiling. "Hey, everybody!" she greeted, waving and receiving a standing ovation in response. She looked at Sour Bill when it finally quieted down. "And really? We need to work on everyone calling me "ruler"… blegh. I don't like that."

She smiled and continued, grabbing the new mic; it was crystalized with rock candy and it glistened. "Alright! We had great day racing, but now it's time to pick tomorrow's racers! We all know the drill by now- first nine across the finish line will represent Sugar Rush! Now, let's get started!"

Vanellope pulled a coin from her hoodie pocket and motioned to the curtains that usually shrouded the chair; she'd walked out of them, and they hadn't lifted. A grey hand pushed them back hesitantly at her signal and Ryley appeared, a small and nervous smile on his face. The racers were suddenly buzzing with talk over why he was here. "Ryley, would you do the honors?"

He nodded and tossed the coin, letting it land perfectly on the launcher that vaulted them up to the trophy over the finish line. Vanellope high-fived him as the game voiced, "Vanellope von Schweetz!"

She was in.

Taffyta came next, shooting a wary glance up at Ryley. "Taffyta Muttonfudge!" echoed through the game.

She jumped in the air, twisting as white sugar and glitter appeared. Taffyta said her catchphrase, "Stay sweet!" and then stared up at Ryley, the other racers following her gaze.

"Rancis Fluggerbutter!" The game was ignored as Ryley became the center of attention. Ryley was oblivious to it all, as Vanellope laughed at something he said.

Taffyta shook her head. "Vanellope can be a real ditz sometimes," she muttered, receiving nods of agreement from Rancis and Candlehead; but Candlehead's was more subdued, and no one noticed.

"She's nice and all, but really?" Rancis shook his head, fixing his hair as he did so. "That guy's a creep!"

"Gloyd Orangeboar!"

"Minty Zaki!"

Taffyta glared as Ryley took notice of her and smiled, then waved. She rolled her eyes, not caring how rude she looked. "He's so weird!"

"Snowanna Rainbeau!"

"Jubileena Bing-Bing!"

"Swizzle Malarkey!"

The racers walked down to the track next to their cars and tried to avoid looking up at Ryley. He was just a weirdo.

"Crumbelina Di Caramello!"

Candlehead shook her head sadly, walking away from her place in line. Vanellope frowned. "Hey, Candlehead! What's wrong?"

Ryley nudged her. "I don't think she has a coin."

Vanellope sighed. She knew all too well how that felt. "I left all my extras at home!"

Her grey-faced companion motioned for her to hold Candlehead there as he reached into his pocket. It wasn't a coin… but maybe the game wouldn't know that…

Ryley grabbed a medallion of silver from his pocket; it was about the size of a coin. "Will this work?"

"What is that?" Vanellope asked, pushing away the microphone.

Sour Bill gasped. "Is that allowed?"

Vanellope shrugged. "I'm allowing it." She looked to Ryley before tossing it to Candlehead. "You sure you wanna give this up?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I don't have any use for it. Found it on the edge of an execution pit. The owner's long gone."

Vanellope nodded back. "Candlehead!" Here-" she tossed down the medallion. "Use this!"

Candlehead shifted the silver flattened cylinder in her hands, feeling the scratch marks on it, ilk it had been bitten; it had, by the Serpent. She nervously handed it up to the levers and it fell into the trophy, her name blaring through the game system as it counted the medallion as a coin. "Candlehead!"

Ryley smiled. "Well, that got put to good use."

The racers stood in awe at the generous gift; for all they knew, that medallion was worth Ryley's life back in his game. Of course, they didn't know it could be a literal life or death situation...

Vanellope smiled at her new friend. "Thanks, Ryley. Really, I could-"

"No, it's fine. I don't need anything in return. The medallion was just bulky and worthless. For all I know, it was Labyrinth's."

Vanellope giggled at that. "Well, I gotta race. Adios, Admiral Earwax!"

Ryley shook his head, smirking. "Good luck!"

He sat down on the floor, not in the chair, in the booth. Sour Bill frowned. "You can sit in her chair, if you want."

Ryley shook his head again, not replying. He didn't want to risk making everyone more mad at him being there by just plopping down in Vanellope's chair.

"You're sure you don't want to sit?"

Ryley grinned at Sour Bill. "I'm good here, thanks though. I just don't… don't want to upset anyone else by being here."

"Who's upset?"

"The-" Ryley stopped himself, knowing he didn't want to single the racers out; everyone in the arcade so far- with the exceptions of Ralph and Vanellope- wasn't too thrilled with his existence. "I'm not sure," he finally said. "But I don't want to offend anyone."

Sour Bill nodded sadly. "I understand."

Ryley sighed and watched as Vanellope waved up to him. He smiled and waved back, knowing that no one understood his specific struggles. It was just something he'd have to figure out- if he could.

* * *

_-so... many... crazy... names! sorry if i butchered any of the racers' names... and sorry for any typos :(_

_thanks, Pirateweasel and Welcome to the New for reviewing! :) you guys are awesome! :D_


	14. To Welcome You

Two weeks.

It had been two weeks since the accident.

The arcade hadn't seen the record breaker with the cryptic signature SMK in two weeks. Mr. Litwak took notice, for he knew who the kid was, and after hearing about the child's sacrificial stunt, was waiting for him to walk back through the arcade doors.

And finally, he did.

His red hair was still messy, sticking up everywhere possible. And his brown eyes were a little clouded over, probably from pain medication.

But he was back.

Before Mr. Litwak could say anything to the boy, a younger girl tugged on his shirt sleeve, saying something about the one game not working. He shot a quick smile at the boy, which was returned, and followed the girl.

The injured kid unconsciously fiddled with the wrapping on his wrist, the one around his chest suddenly becoming constricting. He felt out of place. Maybe it was a bad idea to come here; after just getting back to school two days before- and the only thing the bullies had done was insult him at every turn- he felt like nothing would ever change.

He felt around in his pocket, counting his quarters. He almost smiled at the fact that his aunt and uncle had given him so many he couldn't count them. But he felt guilty about it; he was costing them enough as it was.

Suddenly a shadow fell over his path. He gulped, looking up slowly.

Bully.

The one he'd shoved out of the truck's way.

The bigger boy's dark eyes stared him down, and the mute kid immediately thought of bolting, only to remember his ankle was still being stabbed by millions of tiny hot pins whenever he put full pressure on it.

No way out.

The bully was blocking the way to Fix-It Felix, Jr. Exactly where he was heading. He glanced around, feeling boxed in as other gamers looked up from their games in anticipation.

Would he get punched?

Would there be a fight?

Would he run out in tears?

The boy's eyes finally settled on staring at the floor. He jumped when the bully's hand landed on his shoulder and slowly looked up, bracing himself for the inevitable verbal or physical attack.

"You wanna play?"

Before he could stop himself, the kid behind the name SMK nodded, waiting for the bigger boy to laugh in his face and accompany it with a punch.

But neither came.

Instead, the bigger boy smiled and gently pushed him towards Fix-It Felix, Jr., pulling the money out of his pocket for it. Before he could put the money in the game- the whole arcade now silent aside from the games- the mute boy grabbed his hand and shook his head, indicating he had money for the game.

"I'm paying," the bigger of the two said matter-of-factly, but still nicely. Nice?! When had this kid ever been nice? What had happened while he was in the hospital? Aliens take his brain or something?! "Just…" he said the next part a little gruffly, to still maintain his tough image, "just don't waste my quarter, John."

John? He'd actually been called by his name?! What was going on?

Before the game could start, John ducked behind the game, smiling at his open outlet, the one he'd used when he charged his DS last time; it was almost dead again. He jumped back in front of the game after quickly shoving the charger into the outlet, a small spark flickering. He knew it was only from the connection, that it wasn't anything to worry about.

The bully gaped as his quarter went to good use, the kid everyone had assumed was stupid beating level after level.

He even beat the entire game.

"Okay, I didn't know you'd take that so seriously," the bully muttered, watching as the mute kid heard him, looking at him and shrugging sheepishly as he put in his initials-

wait… SMK weren't his initials!

"You're SMK?" the bully asked, not angry but shocked. So THIS was the kid with the records on everything!

A silent nod was the reply.

"What does that stand for?"

Another shrug. He took it to mean "doesn't matter" as the kid grabbed one of his own quarters and walked off to a different game, the other gamers abandoning their place in line. He shook his head at them when he found one he liked, just jumping in the line. It was a Saturday, and his uncle told him to use up all the quarters, to have fun!

It all just seemed like too much of a dream.

The bully frowned, staring at Fix-It Felix, Jr., thinking. Just what did SMK mean? He wondered if Mr. Litwak knew.

So, he asked.

And all he got in response was this:

"I don't know, son. But I know you made that boy very happy today. He'll tell you if he wants to."

So he stayed with John as long as he could, making sure nobody bugged him. If the kid could push him out of the way of a speeding truck, then couldn't he be a little nicer? Melt that cold and nasty heart of his a little?

That would be hard to do, but seeing the smile on John's face was worth it.

* * *

_-aw... ;)_

_sorry for any typos :(_

_thanks again for the reviews- i really appreciate them! :) any thoughts, criticism, praise- whatever you've got- i'll take it. :)_

_have an awesome day, guys! :)_


	15. Part 4 - New World

**PART FOUR: New World**

** "I've seen a new world... like nothing before- just step through the door right**** into a new world..." -TobyMac "New World"**

* * *

"So, I told Taffyta that she…"

"Luigi wasn't too happy with that prank, Bowser…"

"… and then she said, 'Well, maybe I will!' and dumped the whole mug of root beer over my head!"

"Have you seen that, uh, what's his name… Wyley, is it? I heard he's scary…"

"It doesn't make any sense…"

"That Ryley character freaks me out. Wouldn't you agree, Eggman?"

"What-"

The whole of Game Central Station was shaken violently, throwing game characters off their feet left and right; Mario almost wound up with a Game Over as one of the Zombies nearly fell on top of him, ax perfectly lined up to split him in half. Sonic's rings went flying every direction. Q*bert tumbled into Zangief.

It was chaos.

Everyone clambered back to their feet, questions flying. The station hadn't done that… at least, not that any of them could remember!

Ralph and Ryley ran out of Fix-it Felix, Jr., the Nicelanders and Felix right behind them. Ryley frowned. "What WAS that?!"

"I don't know," one Nicelander said, obviously upset about something, "but it shook the game so hard I dropped my pie! It's ruined!"

Ralph rolled his eyes. Well, that did explain the blueberry stains on the woman's dress.

A flash of blinding light tore through the station next. Everyone gasped and covered their eyes, shocked. What was happening?! Were their plugs being pulled? Was this the end?

The light faded, and next to Fix-It Felix, Jr. there was a new entrance and exit point. It was a black tunnel, and a centipede scurried out of it, causing several characters to shriek or jump on top of benches.

Ryley, on the other hand, grabbed up the creature just as Vanellope ran out of her game. "What was that?!" she screamed, her expression a mix of fear and curiosity.

"Not sure…" Ryley walked up to the new tunnel and pressed his hand against it, pulling it away and revealing a black sludge not covering his hand. "Wait…"

Ralph was glad the arcade was closed; if they'd ran out of their games when it was open…

That wouldn't have been good at all.

For any of them.

"This is it!"

"It?" Ralph stared at Ryley. "What's this 'it'?"

"My game!"

Vanellope stared at the tunnel with apprehension clear on her face. "This is…"

Ryley nodded. "It's Labyrinth's Curse."

* * *

_-new chapter! :) i'll post another one tomorrow night (i hope- Firefox is working, thankfully, but... never know what's gonna happen). :) just got back from Niagara Falls today, and it was so beautiful! getting to see the beauty in God's creation up close is so awesome! :D_

_sorry for any typos in this short chapter... the next one sadly, won't be too long either. :( (just noticed i messed up one of the chapter headers in this story... it's only a minor thing so... idk, i don't think i'll fix it... unless it's noticeable enough. it's not a typo, just not right formatting on my part...)  
_

_and... yeah, i know, i'm boring you all to death :P ... i need some suggestions for my Fictionpress story "Dear -," which is a series of letters to things or people or whatever i can really think of. i need some ideas because my brain doesn't want to work. if you have anything at all... if not, that's okay too. i'll come up with something. it's summer- our brains aren't supposed to work! school killed them! ;)_

_thanks, Pirateweasel and Lizeyli for reviewing! :)_


	16. Part 4 - Chapter 2

Ryley stood in the tunnel, not caring that the majority of Game Central Station was watching him like he was insane.

Ralph laughed as another centipede ran out and Ryley grabbed it up, earning some disgusted whispers from the occupants of the station. "Wow, you're lucky if you get your hands on one of these," Ryley commented, setting them down in the tunnel and letting them run back into the game, a black void pixelating them and allowing them in. "Yep, this is my game alright."

The security that patrolled the station stood in shock. None said a word, knowing that this was truly something they couldn't handle; if the game wasn't of the arcade, then it was out of their hands.

"Are you going back?" Vanellope asked, a little sad that her new friend was probably leaving.

Ryley frowned, kicking a side of the tunnel. "I don't know. I guess I have to."

"Good riddance!" someone in the back shouted.

Ralph glared in the direction of the voice and watched as several other characters nodded in agreement. "Wait… it's Saturday. And the arcade's closed tomorrow 'cause it's Sunday."

"So?" Vanellope asked.

"So, we can help Ryley fix the problem with his game!"

Vanellope immediately brightened up, her chocolate eyes sparkling. "Great! But what exactly are we doing?"

Ryley frowned. "Are you guys sure? I don't want you to get killed…"

"Ralph."

Ralph turned to see Felix and Tamora, both unhappy. "He's right," Felix admitted a little cautiously. "If you die in there, you're gone. Our game will be unplugged!"

Sergeant Calhoun just glared at Ryley; truly, this was the first time the two had met, aside from when he'd appeared unconscious in Game Central Station. "You're willing to possibly destroy a game or two, or possibly the whole arcade, just to save your sorry game?!" she demanded.

Ryley shook his head. For the first time meeting a lot of these characters, he wasn't surprised at their reaction in the slightest. That didn't mean it didn't sting, though. "N-No, ma'am, that's not-"

"You want to endanger us?!" one of the Nicelanders yelled at Ralph, steering the jeers away from Ryley as well as cutting him off. Tamora just watched as Ryley's face remained unreadable; well, the kid had manners, so that was working in his favor even if nothing else was. But that didn't change her opinion of him. This was the first time she'd heard him speak, and she honestly expected some menacing tone to come out of his grey lips, not this soft-spoken and respective tone. The guy was a walking enigma… and she really didn't like that.

"You're going to risk everything for a freak?!"

Ralph glared again, glancing at the slight falter in Ryley's straight face. "FREAK?! He is NO freak! In his game, if he dies, he DOESN'T COME BACK! We have the chance to fix that right now! And you call him a freak because he's a little different? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" Ralph stopped for a breath, glaring at everyone possible. "That isn't right! We have all these Public Service Announcements about being nice to everyone, and yet you call Ryley a freak?! You're all a bunch of hypocrites!" Ralph shook his head and stomped into the tunnel with Ryley.

"Don't forget me!" Vanellope tagged along, grabbing Ryley's hand.

"You two sure about this?" Ryley asked, nervous but grateful for his new friends' kindness.

Ralph and Vanellope nodded, both smiling at him.

"Well then," he smiled as well, "let's go take down Labyrinth!"

And with that, they pixelated and disappeared into the black void, leaving a crowd of stunned, guilty, and ashamed game characters behind.

* * *

_-and Ryley's officially met (more like spoke to) Sergeant Calhoun. that went over rather well… or not..._

_any typos? sorry if there are... i checked, but i might've missed a couple :(_


	17. Welcome to The

"Where are my ADVISORS?!"

"Coming, my Queen," the monotone voice of a soldier rang out through the palace's upper floor.

Labyrinth grabbed the nearest thing- a vase made of shards from the Shards and Spears execution pit- and smashed it to the floor, roaring with rage. "That little… that IDIOT is gone! He is GONE! I want him! I want him dead- BY MY HAND! BY ONLY M-"

"Your Highness, we apologize for the delay-"

"SHUT UP!" Labyrinth thundered, her voice spearing the digital hearts of every subject in her hellish kingdom. "What kept you?" she asked, her voice changing from the roar of complete and utter torture to that of a sweet and innocent angel.

Destruction spoke quickly, knowing Labyrinth had matters of her own, namely the outcast, to deal with. "There was another… sighting."

"Another?!" Labyrinth laughed- no, cackled. "Those imbeciles think that green streak of disaster is this great thing! I want them caught. And," she motioned to a soldier standing at her door, acting as her servant, "I care not how." The soldier fell to his knees in front of her, as was law, and she smiled sickeningly, raising her hand as if she was the puppeteer tugging him painfully to his feet. She whispered something to him and he nodded, running off. "There's only, what, three who follow that miscreant?"

Doom shook his head, the hood hiding the fear in his eyes at this statement- and also the rage flaring within him at his news. "No, your Majesty. There are…" eh braced himself to painfully admit the truth, "there are now ten."

Ten…

"More examples for the public," she said nonchalantly. "They must learn defiance will destroy them. There is only pain, only suffering, only torture, and only darkness. There is no escape. Though how that creature found it is beyond me!" Labyrinth broke off with a wild shriek, then instantly calmed back down. "Now, how did he escape?"

"He found the sixth execution pit."

"WHAT?!"

Doom and Disease stared at Destruction, waiting for his death on the spot. They could tell by his voice he thought nothing of the occurrence, at least not to the severity that Labyrinth did.

Labyrinth growled dramatically, straightening her dress, smoothing the edges as it twisted over her body, knowing that her advisors were watching; she was a promiscuous leader, an excellent liar, a dictator with madness that could rival Hitler's, and she was truly diabolical. Anything she wanted, she got.

But the sixth execution pit…

"He found it…" she set her face as head as stone. "That little filthy insect found it! No one knows what is beyond it, except that it is rumored to be escape! He outsmarted me! How-" she broke off her newest rant as the soldier returned, holding a covered tray and a cage of… butterflies. "Thank you," she said sweetly, grinning and winking at the guard; any servant was more than just an errand runner, much to Labyrinth's delight.

She. Was. SICK.

And that was putting it mildly.

Labyrinth shooed the guard away, then uncover the tray, revealing four glasses of dark red liquid. "Shall we?"

Destruction, Doom, and Disease each took a grimy cup. Labyrinth took one of her own as well, grinning madly. "What shall we drink to, your Majesty?" the three inquired in unison.

"To the end of the rebellion in my streets," she answered with a bitter edge lacing her voice, then adding, "I can see its end in sight. No hope for them. No hope… for anyone."

Her companions cheered to that, clanking their thick gold glasses together, the cracks in their sides growing worse. Labyrinth licked the liquid from her lips, thrilled with its taste; her subjects were scum, and they ate the filth that crawled over the streets.

She, however, ate only the… finest, if it could be called that.

Labyrinth drained her cup quickly, then approached the cage of butterflies, tricking one with purple and orange-peppered wings to land on her pale hand. She smirked. "Things of beauty… are merely illusion," she muttered, watching as the butterfly circled on her hand, its black body shaking as it seemed to recognize it's fate. "And," she continued evilly, "they deserve to die."

* * *

_-the whole thing with the butterflies is weird, i know... it's kinda supposed to be._

_i might have another chapter up tonight, or tomorrow morning. sorry for any typos in this chapter, and thanks for the reviews! :)_

_(and, since he was an awesome guy... :( i'll have a new chapter up soon on my FictionPress story "Dear -," in memory of Robin Williams.)_

_have a great Sunday and God bless! :)_


	18. Life You Thought Was

"Yikes…"

Ryley smirked at Vanellope's reaction to being in his world for only fifteen minutes. It wasn't anything pretty. They were using the walls as guidelines whenever the lights were too far apart, the slime and filth on them making even Ralph flinch. This world was scary. Always has been, currently was, and hopefully would cease to be a living nightmare at some point.

A centipede crawled over Vanellope's foot and she shrieked, not used to the creepy-crawly creatures congregating around her. Ryley quickly grabbed her, spun her around away from him and covered her mouth whispering an apology for being so gruff; if they were found out, they were all dead. Thankfully the odd trio- the live wrecking ball, the glitching racer and the grey and green outcast- was covered in darkness. Otherwise Ryley was sure they would've been spotted. He didn't feel like running into Labyrinth anytime soon. Or ever.

"Sorry," he said apologetically again as he released Vanellope, feeling bad for what he'd done. He hoped she wasn't made at him. "You get used to them. Just don't yell- they'll find us. And Labyrinth isn't anyone you want to be forced to your knees in front of."

Vanellope shrugged it off and continued trekking behind Ryley, Ralph behind her in case something did happen. What Ryley had just said was bugging him... He truly hoped something didn't happen, but he just had this itching feeling in his mind that something was-

"THERE'S THE FREAK!"

Ralph turned, startled by the sudden outcry. He scooped up his two companions, one landing on each shoulder, and looked to Ryley on his right. "Which way?"

"AND HE'S GOT FRIENDS!"

Ryley glanced around. "Left. Our only chance is the-"

"Left it is!" Ralph yelled, throwing himself forward and running full tilt. The smell of… something dead wafted up to his nose and he gagged. "What-"

"Just passed an execution pit," Ryley explained, the smell overwhelming him and Vanellope as well. "Not sure which, but- Ralph! There's a w-"

Ralph closed his eyes and pushed through one of the maze's walls, smashing it to bits and taking out a couple centipedes with his stampede.

"-wall there," Ryley finished, bits of the wall's debris stuck in his hair. "Wow, this is better than what I do!" He was in awe of Ralph's brute strength alone destroying the walls. He'd never seen anything like it! Plus, it would tick Labyrinth off... anything, even a tiny deed like a massive hole in a wall, helped.

"What's that?" Vanellope asked, digging her fingernails into Ralph's shirt like her life depended on it; the angry mob of civilians was advancing, and was probably going to draw the attention of the Hellion Army into the mix, so her life was truly in danger.

Ryley snorted, wincing and biting back a cry of pain as one of the mob managed to throw something, probably a rock, at his back. He almost lost his hold on Ralph. "I run on top of the walls."

"AWESOME!" Vanellope squealed. She sure picked an odd time to get excited. "You should show us-"

"Yeah," Ralph grunted in agreement, plowing through another wall, "but not when we're being chased by an angry mob of blue people!"

Ryley nodded, laughing as Ralph leapt over a wall, leaving their enemies at a dead end. "I think I can manage that."

"STAND DOWN, FREAK!"

"And," Ryley rolled his eyes, "here comes the Calvary."

Vanellope glanced back, then stared. "Um, so the yellow dudes are bad, right?"

Ryley nodded, shouting back an affirmative over the racket; the civilians had found a way around the wall.

Everything was chaos again.

Everything was dark again.

And everything-

a sudden cry flew from Ralph's lips as his feet met air, not ground. The trio snapped back from the past- all of them flashing back to their own personal times of crisis- and fell.

Ryley let go of Ralph, grabbing Vanellope in the process. This couldn't be an execution pit- it just couldn't! There weren't any out this way, were there?

… were there?!

Ryley twisted so whenever they managed to stop falling Vanellope wouldn't get hurt too badly by the fall. As soon as he was done twisting, Vanellope's panicked screams making him and Ralph cringe, all three hit the ground.

And they hit hard.

Ralph groaned, standing first and looking around.

More black.

Pitch black.

"Loving this place more and more," he groaned, knowing for sure his back was going to feel like it had fought against Zangief and lost a dozen times over. He heard footsteps and turned. "Who's there?" he asked, glancing down at Ryley and Vanellope, noticing how Ryley had landed; he knelt down, not getting a response to his question and gently pulled the two apart, Vanellope now laying on the floor. She was fine- maybe painted with a few black and blue bruises, but fine. Ryley was out cold, as was Vanellope, and Ralph wasn't sure what to do. Where was he?

"Intruders!" someone belted out, charging at Ralph.

"Get them!"

Another cry rang out. "It's Ryley!"

"That big lunk hurt him, didn't he?!"

"Wait," Ralph stood, scared now at the fact that he couldn't see all the talking voice as their volume got higher and higher and higher. "I didn't-"

"Get him!"

"See if Ryley's alive!"

Ralph felt something slam into his back and something pricked his neck. His eyes rolled upward in his head and he fell to the ground next to his two younger friends with a loud thud, shaking the game almost as much as one of Labyrinth's screams of terror.

* * *

_-any typos... you know what i'm gonna say by now :(_

_thanks, Lizeyli, Welcome to the New, and Pirateweasel for reviewing :)_

_now, if you'll excuse me, i'm gonna go stuff my face with chocolate. ;)_


	19. Too Good to Be True

Ralph groaned as his eyes snapped open, someone poking his temple being the shock that startled him back to consciousness.

The person poking his forehead was blue, like one of the civilians of Ryley's game, only not screaming and joining an angry mob. Blue eyes, blue patches in light grey hair that reached down her- yeah, the ratty dress gave her away- shoulders, and a blue scarf tied over her nose and mouth. Less chance of identification.

"He's awake," she yelled to someone in the inky black surrounding them that Ralph couldn't see. He groaned again, realizing his hands and feet were bound as feeling returned.

"Good." Another civilian, this one a tall and burly male, stormed over, yanking Ralph's head up from the hard floor by his hair. Ralph snarled at him, ripping the feeble ropes binding him to shreds and throwing the man off in the process. The girl shrieked and rushed to her companion's side as he shouted, "Stand down, oaf! You injured Ryley!"

Ralph was incredulous. "I did not! We fell in- in wherever this place is!" He knew he was getting nowhere, though, as the dim light coming from somewhere he couldn't distinguish illuminated the still forms of Ryley and Vanellope; Ryley was being tended to by three more blue clad people, and a small girl with a brilliant blue braid was checking over Vanellope.

"Yeah, right," the man snapped, stomping over to Ralph with a significant new limp. "Ryley's not waking up. And if he reaches game over, I will personally end you. Am. I. Clear?"

Ralph nodded, glaring back, but secretly hoping and praying his young grey-toned friend would wake. Ryley could set the whole thing straight! He truly had to open his brilliant eyes, prove they weren't enemies, set the game right-

they were running out of time.

They had so little time, Ralph now realized. True, he had known before. But now, with two of their number down for the count, they were royally screwed. Unless they got a miracle, they were completely sunk-

"Rlllph?"

The quiet slur of his name had Ralph scrambling to Ryley's side as his eyes flickered open, slightly dulled from sinking into the black hole of unconsciousness, but still gleaming. Ryley laughed at Ralph's concern for his well-being. "Relax, R-Ralph," he slightly stammered. "I'll be f-fine. Just a l-little shaken up."

"You fell, with Vanellope using you as a cushion!" came Ralph's violent retort, knowing his new friend had been trying to make sure Vanellope wasn't hurt.

Ryley rolled his eyes and pushed himself into a sitting position, masking any winces or traces of pain. "I'm fine," he said hoarsely as he stood, only swaying for a second. "Now, how's Vanellope?"

The little girl kneeling by Vanellope's still limp form shrugged as she looked to Ryley. "Not bad, just a little bump on the head. She'll be up soon."

Ryley nodded, concern flooding his features much like it had Ralph's. "Stay with her." In moments he went from barely conscious and stammering to completely awake. Ryley noticed the broken ropes on the floor, glanced at Ralph and immediately saw the red marks on his wrists, then glared at the man who had tied up Ralph as he put the pieces together. "Really?! The guy's not wearin' yellow, he's not screaming for my head to be brought to Labyrinth on a silver platter, and you tie him up?! He's not a threat- he was with me!"

"Sorry, Ryley," the man backed down, pulling down his own scarf to reveal a blue and black flecked beard and a prominent nose. "I just-"

"I know what you were thinking, but he's safe. Besides, if someone's falling through a hole with me, they aren't the army- they're too self-preserving to make a suicidal move- and it's not a civilian- they're too scared of falling into an execution pit." Ryley smirked. "Besides, he doesn't look like a threat."

"Speak for yourself!" someone else piped up. "He's a walking red mountain."

Ralph scoffed, throwing his hands in the air. "Please, I'm right here!"

Ryley nodded, grinning at him. "So... now you've met the rebels of the game." He stared in awe as twenty more people emerged from the shadows. "There's a lot more of you now. How-"

"You know the way out," Ryley was told. He shook his head, instantly writing it off as a fluke.

Ralph frowned. "Wait, you found the way out of this dump?"

"Accidentally," Ryley admitted; Ralph noticed no one took offense to him dubbing their home as a trash heap. "I was running and found the gates- they're closed, always closed. I stopped running to get my breath back and when I stepped onto the platform leading up to them, a weird frame appeared," he shook his head as he explained, wincing as the pain returned, "all bent and mangled. I guess they're a part of the game normally. I wanted to figure out what it was and stepped into the middle of it. Next thing I knew I was floating out the OPENED gates. It's all blurry- I couldn't breathe or really see 'cause I was trying to stay awake. Exhausted from running so much... it gets old fast."

"Kinda vague," Ralph commented, "but do you think you could remember the way back? To the gates?"

Ryley shrugged. "I guess so, but I get the feeling that there's something more to the gates than just a door out. There's nothing out there! Except for one little light, there's nothing. The frame-thing floated towards it, but glitched on the way and I fell. Next thing I know..." he shook his head. "I was in your house."

Ralph sighed, forming a plan quickly. "So, we get to the gates, find out whatever we can, then go from there?"

Ryley nodded. "Sounds good. Let's get moving."

* * *

_-i'll have another chapter up tomorrow at some point. sorry for the delay in posting_ _this- i had a lot of doctors appointments this week, and i have another one scheduled for next week... yay :P_

_thanks for all the views and reviews so far, guys! :)_


	20. Part 5 - Tonight

**PART FIVE: Tonight**

**"I wanna feel a new day. I wanna live a new way..." -TobyMac "Tonight"**

* * *

"I don't believe this…"

They'd found the gates alright…

and they were gone.

Ryley glared at the dark space in front of them. "I swear they were here! There's the scratch down the wall from… do I even want to know? Anyway, it was here!"

The rebels stood behind Ryley, Ralph and Vanellope; Ralph had Vanellope sitting on his shoulders, as she was still dizzy from the fall. The gentle giant was silently grateful for Ryley pulling Vanellope on top of him to save her from the fall. The dizziness could've been much worse, not to mention the risk of injury.

"Wait…" Ryley handed off his torch, a flaming ball that was an inferno of flickering light, and started feeling along the walls.

Ralph frowned, tilting his head as Ryley frantically raced his hands over the walls; these were the walls that held them in, locked them inside a nightmare. Whatever was outside- just darkness and a small light in the middle of it- didn't seem like anything they needed to be locked away from. "What are you doing?"

"There's something to the walls…" he smacked his hand off a centipede, kicking it as it fell to the ground and calling, "Who wants it?" He quickly got back on track, explaining himself. "I remember falling against them and THEN finding the gates. There HAS to be something to the walls."

Ralph gently handed off Vanellope to a woman standing by him and joined Ryley. At Ryley's questioning gaze, he responded, "What? I have way bigger hands."

Ryley grinned and the two felt around as torches from the rebels were held in their direction. "Here!" Ryley and Ralph's hands met the spot at the same time, feeling an indent with grooves. Ryley frowned. "What is this? Can I have a light?"

He waved a torch that was handed to him, and he shot a quick "thank you" over his shoulder as he held it up. "Oh, great…"

A chorus of, "What?" arose from the rebels, and Vanellope included.

But Vanellope's eyes widened as she saw what the indent was. "That's-"

"I know," Ryley said sadly. "And I don't have it! I hit the wall with it and it's the key to all this… oh my word." He sank down the the ground speechless. "I lost the key out!"

Vanellope jumped out of the woman's arms, dizziness forgotten. Ralph tried to get her to sit down, but she glared at him and took the torch from Ryley. "The medallion," she whispered in awe. "But it's not gone."

"It's not?" Ryley looked up from where he held his head in his hands. "What do you mean?"

"All coins are archived in the game's memory! I can go back and get it!"

The civilians who dared to side with Ryley, and Ralph as well, were confused. "What are you talking about?"

Ryley jumped up, grinning. "I found a medallion. It's apparently the key to opening the gates- I had it in my hand when I fell against the wall, and it clicked the gates into existence! It unlocked them! If Vanellope can get it back…" he frowned. "No, I better do it. Isn't it risky to enter your game's memory?"

"Yes, but if done right, it's fine," Vanellope replied, shrugging as casually as if they were talking about weather.

Ralph shook his head. "Oh no you don't. I'm coming with you to get that back!"

Ryley gave in at that. "But be careful! I don't need to lose… lose my friends."

Finally…

Finally, Ryley could say he had friends. Friends… he'd never had any before. True, his followers might count, but they were more a dysfunctional family that were scurrying about with a suicidal-seeming mission. They weren't quite friends, though, but they were getting there. They argued, they fought- especially over Ryley himself as he ran around gathering food for the lot or snuck into Labyrinth's castle and sabotaged weapons or knocked out soldiers.

A distant family… not friends. But if this all worked out, maybe later there'd be time to become friends with his supporters.

As Ralph and Vanellope moved away, heading for the access point into Game Central Station, Ryley smiled at them.

He looked back at the wall once they were out of sight and bit his lip. He just hoped they got back quickly.

And alive.

* * *

_-i'm sorry for not posting this when i said i would :( we went to my grandparents and i completely forgot :( and sorry for any typos as well :(  
_

_well... the story's almost over. yep. there's a few more chapters, but it's coming to a close._

_have an awesome day, guys! :)_


	21. Part 5 - Chapter 2

"No one left the Station?"

Ralph shrugged and shook his head in response to Vanellope's question. "Guess not," he mumbled as he Hulk-leaped through Vanellope's game to the castle, Vanellope on his shoulder; her fingernails were digging into his shirt like daggers because she was afraid of falling off.

"Why?"

Ralph almost shrugged, then realized that with how fast he was going a shrug could send little Vanellope flying across the great fields and hills and mountains of sugary goodness. "I don't know," he finally admitted. "Maybe they're re-thinking the whole thing with Ryley?"

"Maybe…" Vanellope dug in more as Ralph skidded to a stop, reaching the castle in record time; seriously, his time rivaled that of the Flash's. "Now, we gotta get the medal. It's in the memory banks somewhere-"

"And I'm the one getting it."

Vanellope glared at Ralph, still looking adorable and not really mad as her fists met her hips and her eyes narrowed. "Oh no you don't, Loony Lumberjack. I'm going in!"

"No- it's dangerous! You could get lost in the memory and your game would get unplugged."

"So would yours, Lamebrain," Vanellope deadpanned.

Ralph left no room for argument. "I'm going. Only me. And that's final."

Vanellope sighed and crossed her arms. "Stubborn old smelly hobo," she growled.

The joking tone in her voice met Ralph's ears and he laughed, making her look up from the white and milk chocolate swirled floor in the entrance of the castle. "I'll be fine."

Vanellope sighed and nodded, a small smile tugging at her lips as Ralph headed for wherever it was he was going- he'd probably just ask Sour Bill if he couldn't find the access point to the game's memory. She decided to try to get her mind off worrying about Ralph. "Okay, so Ryley's game…" she started mumbling everything she could think off, hoping this was enough of a distraction. "Ryley's game is glitched. You die in it, you die for goo-" she froze and immediately thought of Ralph.

"Great, now I gotta start over." She plopped down on the floor and started mumbling again, picking up where she left off after mentally reciting what she'd just said. "… and this medallion thing is part of the reset process. So it's all kinda like my game. Gotta cross the finish line to reset it… but Ryley's game doesn't have a finish line. But maybe there's something outside those gates if we unlock them? Maybe a switch or lever? A test or something that Ryley will have to pass? There has to be something that can fix his game!" She stopped and sighed, her mind losing the battle to not dwell on Ralph.

Was he okay?

Did he get lost in the memory databank?

Did he find the coin?

Was his lumbering frame that reeked of sweat and concrete drifting in the memory?

Would Ralph come back?

Would-

"I got it!"

Before Vanellope could react, Ralph had scooped her up and sat her on his shoulder as he started leaping across the game again. "That was a little scary," he commented, feeling the weight of the medallion in his hand, pressed into his palm.

"Are you okay?" Vanellope asked, hoping Ralph was perfectly fine.

"Yeah." He stopped to take a breath as he leaped over a chocolate creek. "There was a code that I needed…"

…code? King Candy… must've been him. "How'd you get past it?" Vanellope inquired as the exit to Game Central Station loomed in the distance.

"Wrecked it."

Vanellope laughed at that. "Why was that exactly what I expected to hear?"

* * *

_-now maybe this whole issue with Ryley's game will get sorted out, huh?_

_sorry for it being short, and sorry for any typos :(_

_i'll probably post another chapter this afternoon or tonight :) and it should be a longer one! _

_have an awesome day, guys, and God bless! :)_


	22. Part 5 - Chapter 3

"Okay…"

Ryley cradled the medallion in his hands, his breath shaky as he stared at it. How had he come so close to solving the deadly problem in his game and managed to botch it?! He was supposed to be a leader in the game…

**"Where do you think you're going, FREAK?"**

**"Scum!"**

**"You freak! Stay away from my child!"**

Ryley shook his head and reached for the indent in the wall, biting his lip as he pressed the medallion in.

**"There's the green idiot!"**

**"You should just turn yourself in- it'll make our lives easier!"**

Why wouldn't the voices stop?! They never left him alone, did they? He was tired of being haunted by them nonstop. The shrieks from horrified children. The citizens chasing him like cheetahs on an infinite sugar high. The army surrounding him at every turn…

**"MONSTER!"**

The outline glowed, bursting with brilliant colors, creating a kaleidoscope that surrounded the rebels and the tiny form of Vanellope and the montrous form of Ralph. Everyone was reaching out to touch it, except Ryley, who could feel it race past him. The frigid wind that blew around them made him shiver in awe. This… this was beautiful!

**"We'd all be better off if you fell in one of the execution pits!"**

The voices finally died down as a rush of wind nearly knocked the group off their feet. Ryley forced his eyes to open to slits, which made the headache that still lingered on from his fall earlier protest. The gates were opening! He remembered the wind from last time, but it hadn't been this much… or had it?

Either way, this was nothing he'd be forgetting anytime soon.

As soon as the wind slowed to the point where the group wasn't fighting for their feet to still be grounded on the floor, they all clambered up to the gates, watching as the two oddly shaped and rusty metal doors clanked open with a hiss. The world outside was revealed.

Ralph frowned. It was pitch black! Well, except for a growing mass of light- wait, what? "Didn't you say the light wasn't huge before?" Ralph asked Ryley, wondering just what a growing light meant.

Ryley nodded, his concern growing as well. "Yeah, but maybe this is normal?" he weakly suggested, not sure why the light was so big. It was almost blinding now, and he couldn't really look at it much.

But it was the opposite of all the darkest that filled the maze, so…

Ryley noticed the edges of the gates opening, at the base, revealing the frames that were used as transports. They were old, though, and very rusted; some came up with a click or a creak, and centipedes scurried like crazy.

For once, the starving citizens of the living nightmare forgot all about food and instead walked up to the frames, running their callused hands over the notches caused from rust. The frames were bent as weirdly as the gates.

Ryley smiled as they all admired what was the way out, or at least part of it. He was only a guide in the game, not someone who was supposed to know everything. He-

"Seize them!"

Everyone turned to see a horde of soldiers rushing their way, a thick cloud of dust accompanying them. Ryley glared at them and yelled for his supporters to get on the frames. As soon as they did, in groups of three or four, the frames lifted and started floating out towards the darkness with a single penetrating light. He motioned from Ralph and Vanellope to get on one two; Ryley noted for the first time there had only been twelve transports, and Ralph and Vanellope very reluctantly, shouting that he could get on with them, got on the last one. The soldiers surrounded Ryley quickly, shards aimed at him, spitting words of hate his way. He wondered why he wasn't dead yet. A shard should've impaled him and left him gasping for his last breath. Why-

The soldiers parted their circle momentarily, making way for…

Labyrinth.

The queen of the hellish domain grinned evilly, and Ryley's supporters looked on in fear and disbelief as she walked right up to him, her grin becoming a furious scowl as she snapped, "You are supposed to bow in my presence, prisoner!"

Ryley stood still and refused, looking straight into Labyrinth's eyes.

Labyrinth raised her hand and one of her puppet soldiers punched Ryley in the gut. Ryley stumbled backwards, but remained standing. He didn't even bend in the slightest way.

Labyrinth shook her head. "I guess we have to do this the hard way… shame." Another flick of the wrist and another guard attacked, punching Ryley in the face. Ryley didn't resist, but still refused to bow. He would not bow to this monster! He-

Crack!

Ralph winced, knowing that one of Ryley's ribs was either fractured or broken from another blow. The three soldiers continued the beating, forcing Ryley onto the ground, but he still wasn't bowing, or kneeling. He managed to fall, when a fist hit his face for what felt like the billionth time, on his back.

He.

Would.

Not.

BOW.

His supporters felt helpless as they floated closer to the light, but instead of seeing the light, they saw their leader being beaten mercilessly. Instead, it was Vanellope who turned away, crying, as he new friend was hurt. She thought she was seeing things, but looked again.

The light twisted and churned, almost unbearable to look at now, and it shot a beam towards the gates, hitting the rim itself. The gate glowed, throwing several soldiers off their feet as the light which raced over the gate's rim burned like fire. Labyrinth was angered by this, and motioned for three others to step forward. Ralph grimaced as they hobbled into view, looking almost dead. They started mumbling things that he couldn't make out, attempting to blanket the light that had Labyrinth deep inside terrified, but only failing as it grew brighter and brighter. Another beam shot out, this one in the direction of Ryley's friends. It formed a weird shape, then transformed into a rickety wood and rope bridge that led to another transport frame.

Vanellope looked to Ralph for a second, thoroughly confused. What was happening?!

The guards finally stopped their beating, though no one knew if it was halted by a signal from the oh so lovely Labyrinth or not. She stepped closer to Ryley, who lay on his back, gasping for air. Grey blood trickled out of his nose and from his busted lip; several shards had been used to slice up his skin, leaving gashes on his arms and legs and chest. His eyes were clouded over in pain, but he smiled as he stole a quick glance at the light. The light was good! He knew that now for sure. But how was he going to reach it?

Surrounded by guards.

Labyrinth standing over him.

**"Oh, that green freak? He's nothing but dirt. No brains, no ability- well, except the ability to make me wanna kill 'im!"**

Blasted voices!

All his friends following his orders were drifting closer to the light, and as he glanced up again, one transport was sucked inside.

Labyrinth kicked his chest to get his attention back on her, her eyes burning with hatred. "I've been waiting to capture you," she drawled, grinning evilly. "But you still haven't bowed to me. It isn't so hard. Just bow down, kneeling in my glorious presence, and maybe I won't kill you… you freak."

Ryley slowly pushed himself up so he was almost on his knees, shaking from pain. He crouched low, not kneeling, and jumped up, using his only arm to punch a guard in the face as he leapt over the circle which had shrunk around him. He raced over the hot gateway and onto the bridge, hoping he didn't die yet.

He could feel it coming. Death. His game over was on its way from the beating. He needed to save the game, and save it fast.

As Ryley was almost to the transport, he felt additional weight on the bridge. Labyrinth had joined him on it, her dress scorched from the light and smoldering. She was burring up! The light had caught her on fire-

and it was starting to ignite the bridge they both stood on.

**"Leave us alone! You never do anything except destroy our lives!"**

Ryley winced as he glanced over his shoulder, trying to just focus. Just a few more steps to the transport frame and-

the bridge crackled under his feet, growing hot as Labyrinth chased him, her feet expertly dodging the missing wooden slats. Ryley didn't hesitate as he jumped for the transport, the bridge beneath him crumbling away as ash, Labyrinth trying to run the other way as she realized her fatal error, screaming as she fell into the blackness below them, a loud and sickening crunch echoing in the vast space around them.

Ryley reached for the transport, hoping that he would reach it. He felt his foot hit it-

but he slipped.

* * *

_-and... cliffhanger! i couldn't help it- me is super evil! X)_

_but seriously, only two or three more chapters to go... i'll miss Ryley :( but idk if i'll really miss Labyrinth all that much..._

_speaking of the ruler of the Underworld... Labyrinth's description is now up on my profile. i was debating whether or not to include her for a while, but now she's there._

_thanks, Welcome to the New, for reviewing! :) you are awesome! :)  
_


	23. Welcome to the New

John was exhausted.

Things had gone so well yesterday that it all seemed like a cruel dream that was going to be pulled out from under him the second he truly believed it had happened.

A bully… was NICE?! Since when did that happen? He was just a punching bag for the bullies. The insults were still coming at school, but the bully who'd been nice before hadn't said word one to him.

At all.

Since the accident, the mute boy found himself wondering, and immediately shoving the thought away because it was selfish, if this whole incident would get him any credit with the bullies.

Strangely enough, it had.

Hoping the punching and getting shoved into lockers would stop was a bit far-fetched in his young mind, but it never hurt to hope for it, right? What made him lower than the bullies? The fact that he hadn't been able to speak a single word in his life? So what? He didn't need to talk; in fact, he liked listening a lot more. Maybe they'd stop calling him names sooner or later... most likely later. Or never. But at least he'd managed to get one bully to stop treating him like dirt- at least for now. And John was willing to take any reprieve, however small, he could get.

John twisted in his bed, throwing a worn blue quilt to the grey carpet. He groaned and didn't bother reaching for it; he didn't need it.

What he needed… was his DS.

He reached for the nightstand, his thin fingers brushing against the edge where paint had worn off over the years, the black paint's wear exposing almost a coffee colored wood.

No DS…

He sighed, sad at this. He'd left it at the arcade; John remembered plugging it in there and forgetting it. He'd have to wait until after the weekend and get it back, that was if someone hadn't stole it.

So the silent boy gave up thinking about the game, just forgetting it as he just needed no more worrying at the moment. Doctors said no stress. Doctors said no aggravating injuries. Doctors said he really needed to eat more or something because he was so blasted underweight. Doctors said that maybe he should be cyberschooled because was getting beaten up mercilessly at school.

Well…

He was always thinking, so in a sense, he was always stressed.

He was helping his uncle with housework, despite his aunt's protest, so he was aggravating the injuries.

He was eating more- courtesy of his aunt who thought he needed to out-eat the Flash- and had gained a little weight, but only enough so the scale registered it and the mirror didn't.

He was still going to school, and he didn't feel like burdening his aunt and uncle with cyberschooling.

He was listening to the doctors so well, wasn't he?

John closed his eyes and winced as more pain hit him; he just wanted to sleep, and the pain wouldn't let him. He started thinking about anything that would distract him until the sun came up and he started helping with more housework, only to hear his aunt's protests.

He thought about his science project that was due Monday and he hadn't' started it in the least. But he'd gotten an extension for… obvious reasons.

He thought about pizza. For some reason pizza seemed like a good thing to think about.

He almost thought about his parents, but quickly shoved those memories away. He didn't need to start crying now.

John shifted in the bed and thought about his aunt and uncle. His uncle hadn't been as distant since he'd been hurt, but maybe it was only a temporary thing.

And his aunt… he thought about her, too. She was more concerned than ever about him. Was all this going to just disappear after a week or two? He really hoped not, but even if it did, he'd survived without it before.

And he thought about himself.

Now the secret that he was SMK was out.

He was SMK…

Stupid.

Mute.

Kid.

And he loved it.

The fact that no one knew what it meant made it only more exciting for him. John laughed softly to himself as he realized that it was ridiculous to think of himself as that name, but it was true.

At least, it was true according to the bullies.

He was stupid.

He was mute.

And he was still a kid.

But what happened when he got older? Did he change the "kid" to "man"? SMM? Would he still be playing arcade games when he was older?

With his luck, he probably would be.

And it would be awesome!

John smiled his tiny smile and relaxed, rolling onto his back very slowly to hopefully avoid pain- nope, didn't work. He hissed for a second as his ribs protested any movement. But his smile returned quickly.

He was so happy.

And SMK just hoped it would stay that way.

Now he just needed his DS back...

* * *

_-i intended to have this chapter up yesterday, but one of my friends on Twitter had a friend pass away yesterday morning :'( there's a lot of people who were impacted by her death, and her friends aren't taking it too well. the girl who passed away was Chloe, and if you guys could, please pray for her family and her friends. one of her friends is really beating herself up over it :'( i'm upset too, considering i didn't even notice anything was wrong! maybe i did after i followed her or maybe she was doing alright at the time, but i still feel really bad :(_

_sorry for any mistakes or typos :(_

_thanks for all the reviews, and even if you didn't leave a review, thanks for reading! :)_

_have an awesome day, awesome peoples, and God bless! :)_


	24. Part 6 - Fireblazin

**PART SIX: Fireblazin**

**"We got a fire blazin' in our hearts. No, we're never gonna stop until the whole world knows who You are, who You are... who You are..." -Capital Kings "Fireblazin"**

* * *

Ryley felt the fact the he was falling to his death more than he knew it. He closed his eyes, feeling the tears he held back in front of his supporters, the tears he'd held back for so long, spill from his eyes in rivers and drip down onto his ragged clothes.

He had failed.

Suddenly, everything stopped. Ryley cringed, wondering how he'd fallen so fast…

and why wasn't he dead yet? He wasn't upset that he wasn't dead, but the thought was a little frightening that he'd fallen and was still aliv-

Wait, he hadn't fallen..

Ryley groaned as he was pulled up onto the transport and sat down on its narrow ledge. His head lolled to the side as his muddled thoughts tried to piece together an explanation.

And then, through his half-closed eyes, he saw what- no, who- had saved him.

Ralph.

Ralph frowned, gently drumming one of his large fingers against Ryley's cheek. "Come on, kid," he said encouragingly. "Stay awake. It's almost over. Then you can rest."

Rest… that sounded so good. Like paradise...

Ryley forced his eyes all the way open and pushed himself up, leaning on the side of the transport frame, his body shaking. Ralph was right…

as soon as this was over, he'd be able to rest. After his game over.

He was too tired to live after this. If he completed getting to the light, he wouldn't survive long enough to wait for the game's reset.

But as the transports continued drifting towards and into the light, Ryley smiled sadly. "I wonder what it'll b-be like," he stammered, looking to Ralph. "Maybe they'll all be happier. I h-hope s-so."

Ralph's frown grew. "Kid, you're gonna make it Just hang on a little longer, Ry-"

Ryley shook his head and fell to his knees. "The game's reset time will take too long. I-I'll be long g-gone before I c-could be saved."

Ralph shook his head. He was NOT letting this kid die. Ryley had done too much, seen too much, been through way too stinking much to reach an eternal game over now. He grabbed the small game character by the shoulders and shook, Ryley biting back a scream of pain; that had HURT! He could tell Ralph was trying to keep him from… from dying. But he didn't care.

Things were going to change now, whether he was around to experience it or not.

Without either one realizing it, their transport was sucked into the light, the last one to be pulled in-

just as Ryley mumbled a raspy, "Thanks," and his last breath echoed in Ralph's ears.

Ralph shook his head, grabbing up the kid and standing with his limp body, only to see the light around them. The other transports were floating in the light mass around them, all looking on in grief or shock at seeing Ryley gone.

But before the grief could truly register, before denial could set in, the light exploded, growing so bright everyone was cowering away from it. The light swirled around them, and if they'd seen it, it shot out like a shockwave, hitting Labyrinth's underworld and dissolving it. Everything vanished.

And then the new appeared.

New maze walls shot up, laced with flowers of all colors and trees heavy with ripe fruit. Fountains flowing with fresh water sprung up, and a sky- a true sky- appeared, blue and dotted with fluffy tuffs of clouds.

Ralph dared to squeeze his eyes open and gasped at seeing all the people- all civilians- floating and their sorry excuses for clothing being transformed into white gowns or robes. They were gently set down on grass covered fields and the light retracted itself into a dimmer sphere in the sky. The sky also twinkled with stars, and now parts of a midnight sky swirled with the light blue, making it the perfect mix of sun and shade.

Finally, everyone could see and they were amazed. No soldiers, no centipedes-

it wasn't dark and dingy anymore.

It was...

beautiful.

It was unbelievably beautiful.

Vanellope rushed over to Ralph, hugging him. Their clothes had remained the same ones they wore in their games, but neither took notice.

What they did notice was the motionless figure lying in the middle of the civilians, still in his rags. The marks of the beating were stronger, showing his pain.

Some of the civilians stepped closer, and most of Ryley's supporters did as well, the little girl who'd watched over Vanellope after the fall rushing to him and hugging his dead weight.

One man sighed, shaking his balding head, his blue eyes fixed on the ground. "He saved us…"

"I called him a freak," one lady to his left sobbed, her tiny frame shaking as she cried.

"I said he should turn himself in, make our lives easier," another man injected into the moment. His guilt shone in his blue eyes as he stared at the battered kid's unmoving form.

Another man, this one older, spoke up as well. "At least you didn't say what I did… I told him to fall in an execution pit and kill himself." After his guilt laced statement, others admitted he had not been the only one to say that. Everyone was downcast as Ryley lay in front of them, gone.

The shame burrowing into everyone's blue eyes had Ralph and Vanellope in tears. Ryley hadn't given up hope. He'd fought to survive- no, live- and he'd won.

For everyone.

The little girl pushed away from Ryley and whispered in his ear, "I miss you," then quickly kissed his grimy cheek, her tears dripping down onto his face; Ryley had saved her from falling into execution pits on many occasions, as she was teased for being clumsy. He helped her to overcome the words people called her when she stumbled or tripped and made her feel like she was on top of the world.

And now her hero was gone.

She sat back and hugged her knees to her forehead, rocking-

just as Ryley's eyes snapped open.

In just a few mere seconds, his scars faded, his wounds disappeared into nothing, but his arm remained missing. His clothes didn't transform into a pristine robe, but no one cared.

Ryley was alive.

The kid sat up slowly, looking exhausted. He probably was, even though he felt no pain. The little girl jumped into his arms, and he hugged her, grinning like a madman and crying his eyes out.

He'd lived to see it.

Before he could react, Vanellope had raced from Ralph's side and was hugging him, too. Ralph lumbered over and rubbed his shoulder, smiling down at him.

Ryley finally got the girls to release him and he stood up, seeing all the ashamed and tear-stained faces. "What's with all the crying?" he asked, confused.

"You," Ralph answered, and Ryley shook his head.

"Don't start crying over me. I'm not dead… anymore. And besides, we're all here, alive. We're FREE. We won't die! We can enjoy our lives now. But…" he shrugged, looking at a tall rectangular pillar nearby with writing carved into it. His coding, now reset with full memory of what he was supposed to do, knew the writing was a new code, a set of rules. He continued speaking, saying, "I guess we have some rules laid out for us. And," he read them over quickly, nodding at what they were, "we're gonna follow 'em. These rules won't hurt us any. So…" he walked over to the pillar and smacked it lightly for emphasis, "this is our guide now. Not Labyrinth. We live by this- no lying, no cheating, no stealing, and there's a few more, but nothing that'll kill us- and we'll be fine." He wasn't the only one who remembered this was how the game was supposed to work; the civilians, their memories restored as well, knew this was right.

In fact, if their game wasn't glitched, they would've all been living under the rules, even under Labyrinth's rule, and Labyrinth would've been abiding by them, too, until the game system was turned on.

"What if we slip up?" someone asked.

A spark of light flickered in the sky and Ryley grinned. "We all mess up sometimes. Who doesn't? But we just gotta pick ourselves up from where we fell and keep going."

"What are they?" the woman who'd been crying her eyes out earlier piped up.

Ryley took a deep breath and began to read off one side of the pillar; all four sides bore the same inscription of rules. "'Do not lie to your friends or neighbors. Do not steal from anyone. Do not hold a grudge against anyone. Do not let your anger control your motives. Never take what you have for granted. Never cut your robe or gown- your clothes will always be clean and never wear out. Lust and deception are forbidden. Do not use hurtful words in a discussion, and do not curse. Do not take another's life, even if they will be revived from their game over. Discipline will not hurt a child, but be sure it is not done in anger and be sure it is not abusive. Take care of your game's environment. Share with your neighbors. You must gather your own food, unless you are unable physically. Help the young and the elderly, and defend the weak."

The crowd nodded their consent to agree to the rules. Ralph and Vanellope burned them into their minds, memorizing them.

Ryley grinned at this, then looked to Vanellope and Ralph, his grin fading. "I… I guess you have to leave now, huh?"

The two nodded sadly, both hugging him before they left. Vanellope smiled at him and said, "If your game ever gets plugged in at Game Central Station again, you're welcome to come to either of our games."

Ralph nodded. "We'll miss you, kiddo."

Ryley smiled, hoping he could hide how sad he was at having to leave his new friends. "I'll miss you both, too."

And with that, Ralph and Vanellope left Labyrinth's Curse behind, Ryley watching until they disappeared behind one of the many rolling grassy hills in the direction of the gateway to their world. One tear ran down his face as he whispered, "I will never forget either of you. Ever."

He then turned around and let his grin come back as the butterflies locked away in Labyrinth's castle, now free, came flying in, only making their new game more beautiful. Two landed on Ryley, a violet and amber one tickling his hand as it tried to taste him and figure out if he was a flower, and a blue and white one settling down on his unruly mane of hair. He laughed, knowing now that things were really, truly, looking up for him. For everyone.

Welcome to the new world.

* * *

_-one chapter left!_

_sorry for any mistakes- i'm kinda half asleep and proofing this :P_

_and, in case it doesn't quite make sense how Ryley didn't die, he died as soon as the transport entered the light, which was the only part of the game that wasn't glitched. _

_and, if anyone's interested, the song that the last two chapters are named after, "Fireblazin" by Capital Kings, is an amazing song! if you've got a few minutes, just give it a try :)_

_thanks for all the reviews so far, guys! :)_


	25. Part 6 - Chapter 2

Another Saturday had come.

Weeks had passed since John had left his DS abandoned in the arcade. Well, seemingly abandoned; he had no idea what had happened over that weekend. All he knew was that his DS had a fine layer of dust coating it, and he was overjoyed that no one had run off with it.

John had plugged it in to charge it again as soon as he'd gotten to the arcade, a few bullies moving to block a game from him as he turned around from kneeling behind Fix-It Felix, Jr.

Bullies…

The mental alarm that he could not, for the life of him, shut off- he was sure it was paranoia by now- blared as they glared down at him and he quickly stepped back, bumping into someone. He turned around and fought the urge to drop to the ground in the fetal position as he saw it was the bully who'd been nice to him here, but never at school.

And with his swell buddies here…

John figured he was dead, his barely healed injuries waiting to be broken again. He closed his eyes and looked down, his hands curling into fists as he braced for-

a hand on his shoulder?!

He opened his eyes and saw the bully flash him a quick smile. He walked up to his friends and said, "Move it." His command parted the group of seven jerks easily and they stood aside as John was pushed by the former bully up to the game. As John nodded his thanks and paid for a game, his savior turned around and John could've sworn he heard him say, "Leave him alone, you idiots! He's fine."

One of them groaned in response and glared at John's back, silently and secretly awed at how high John's score was already. The kid was a gamer!

The group watched as his score climbed higher and higher, and the only one not shocked was the ex-bully who was working on juggling a bad boy rep with a mushy heart hidden somewhere in there. He smirked at his pals as John beat the high score-

and then the game.

But what shocked them more was that his initials were "SMK" when he hit the leaderboard. The smirking boy frowned and tapped John on the shoulder after he'd typed it in. "What's 'SMK'?" he questioned.

John shrugged and grinned, walking off to another game.

The kid played one game.

And then another game.

And another game.

Two more games.

Yet another four more games.

All until he ran out of games.

John left with a small grin on his face, a few quarters still left. He'd save them so his aunt didn't have to give him so many next weekend-

scratch that. The weekend after. He had a dentist appointment and then a check-up to make sure he was truly well enough to stop being fussed over.

Yay…

He groaned at the thought and walked away from the arcade, suddenly remembering his DS. It was still in there!

John dashed back inside, hurrying over to the outlet-

gone.

The DS…

The charger…

Both were gone.

John wanted to scream; he would've cried if he didn't see the bullies still nearby, one walking his way as he stood up-

one was coming towards him!

And… que mental siren.

He backed up, seeing as it wasn't the nice one of the bunch, into Fix-It Felix, Jr. and wondered if he should raise his hands in surrender or run while he could.

Instead of throwing a punch, the bully just extended his arm and dropped a DS and charger into John's hands. "You forgot it," he muttered blankly, then walked off.

The DS! It wasn't gone!

John smiled and wished he could talk, just to say a simple "thank you". He rushed off again, out the door and down the street, hoping that maybe the bullies wouldn't be so much of a problem anymore.

He ran all the way to his house, grinning like crazy as-

"John! Why are you running?! Your appointment isn't until tomorrow! Don't run!"

He froze, hearing his aunt's voice and immediately wilted, nodding sadly. She was probably mad at him now… or at least annoyed. He went to his room and sat there, waiting for her to come up and either scold him or… what else would she do? The doctor hadn't said he couldn't run, so what was the problem with running? He felt fine…

John sighed and laid down on his bed, on the covers, and pulled his pillow over this face as he rolled over onto his stomach, feeling really tired for no reason. He blamed it on the pillow; ever since he was little, all he had to do was smell this pillow that had a scent he could only define as warm and happy, and he was out like a light.

And sure enough, John was asleep in minutes.

The DS fell out of his jeans pocket as he twisted in his sleep, his breathing deep and even. He smiled in his sleep, not dreaming, but at least he wasn't having nightmares about the crash, or about really random stuff that scared the crap out of him.

He slept through his aunt walking in, feeling a little guilty for her mother hen outburst. John wasn't going that fast when he ran, like he knew not to overdo it. She sighed, knowing she'd have to delay her apology until dinner; it would just be her and John tonight as her husband was out of town. He was visiting a friend who needed some help building a porch, and he wouldn't be back until late that night.

Alone with John…

Before, the thought of being alone with a child she originally hadn't known what do to with would've had her either angry or annoyed. But now, she was happy. The quiet kid was a sweet boy, and she just wanted him to be okay.

As she went to leave the room, she noticed that John's DS was on the floor. That wasn't right. She'd seen him lay it with reverence, like it was made of glass, on the nightstand. She picked it up and sat it in its place, then leaned down and kissed the boy's forehead, smiling at him.

Things were getting better for everyone.

Finally.

* * *

_-and, that's it! :) _

_i'm gonna be taking a break from writing for a while, mainly because school starts today (gulp...) and my mom's birthday's coming up. i'll be back soon, though! :)_

_thanks again for all the reviews! :)_

_have an awesome day, guys, and God bless! :)_


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